The Denver City Council on Monday passed a Proclamation Endorsing Improved Medicare for All as the State or National Health System.
Joining almost 100 US cities including Fort Collins, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Milwaukie, Tucson, Seattle, Minneapolis, and the Town of Jamestown, Colo., the Denver Council took this action to stand for the wellbeing of everyone in Denver.
A group of medical providers and citizens worked for months to get the resolution passed.
Several Denver medical providers spoke in favor of the proclamation, including Rick Bieser, MD, a retired emergency room doctor who has worked to enact single payer universal health care such as improved Medicare for All for 30 years.
“Denver provides world class care, but increasingly not for many of us who need it,” Bieser said. “When cities like Denver say ‘we support this on behalf of our citizens,’ it’s a step we hope will carry us to the future. I want this to pass in my lifetime.”
Denver City Councilman Chris Hinds, who suffered a paralyzing car accident in 2008, introduced the motion.
“I went from being a runner and someone who played on three soccer teams to racking up $1 million in health care bills in three months,” Hinds said.
At the time of his accident, Hinds had private insurance. He said he is no stranger to calls from debt collectors. Now, he considers himself lucky to be on both Medicare and Medicaid.
“The majority of people who declare bankruptcy, it’s because of medical bills, and of those, the majority have insurance. I don’t have to worry about bankruptcy. That’s a feeling too few Americans have.
“This is going to help a lot of people” Hinds said.
Watch Denver Councilman Chris Hinds’ testimony on the Proclamation to the Finance and Government Committee starting at 20:07 here.
“The City Council listened to its people, who told them loud and clear that a true universal health care system will serve every Coloradan,” Shannon said. Other Colorado communities say they want a health care system that works better for everyone.
Denver’s Proclamation follows similar resolutions passed by the municipal leaders of Jamestown and Fort Collins.
