Thirty Years Ago This Week: Discussions were growing heated over the Colorado statutory reforms that would be necessary to comply with H.R. 1200, the federal American Health Security Act. In an effort to help ease the transition, U.S. Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell hosted a panel to discuss Colorado’s approach to enacting the required healthcare reform measures.

While Richard Veloz, a member of President Bill Clinton’s health care task force had told reporters that Congress would be ready to act by the end of 1993, many of Campbell’s panelists were not as optimistic. In fact, several of the expert panelists said they believed that Colorado stood a much better chance than the federal government itself of enacting the required reforms by the next year’s deadline of November 1994.

“Not in 1994, ’95 or ’96,” said state Sen. Jim Rizzuto, D-Swink, responding to moderator Floyd Ciruli who had asked the panel when the deadline could realistically be met by the United States government. “I think the state will put something in place way before the federal government. There will be something in place by then at the national level, but nothing that will solve everything.”

“We have to deal with reality,” said D.D. Hock, chairman and CEO of Public Service Company of Colorado. “We have a much better chance in Colorado.”

Dr. Leigh Pruitt, president of the Colorado Medical Society, said that it wasn’t altogether clear whether the sweeping reforms demanded by the Clinton administration were needed because “the health care system appears to be moderating itself.”

The administration’s plan drew considerable opposition for its proposed 80-20 split of health care costs between employer and employee.

“We’ll all be required to pay something,” Veloz said. “All employers will have to pay at least part of the cost.”

?Those costs were guaranteed to rise according to Dr. John McGrath, executive director of the Health Policy Council of the Center for the New West.

“If the 37 million Americans who lacked any form of health insurance were brought into the system, “demand will go up and costs will rise,” McGrath said. “Controlling costs is a benchmark of any reform plan.”

Sen. Campbell, told panelists and attendees that the barriers to health care were real. Growing up, he had never had access to health insurance until he was 18 years old, he said, citing figures to drive home rising high costs. “It’s clear the economy cannot stand up to it.”

Twenty Years Ago: Democrats in the state Senate expressed their support and solidarity for their eleven colleagues in Texas who had decamped to Albuquerque to deny the Texas legislature the quorum needed to pass the Republican’s redistricting plan.

“I wholeheartedly support the Texas Democratic senators and salute their courage to do what is right and just,” said Senate Minority Leader Joan Fitz-Gerald, D-Golden. “As we found out, real legislation and normal procedure suffered because of power plays. Republicans have failed to properly conduct the business of Colorado.”

Fitz-Gerald then brought the conversation back home, attacking Senate President John Andrews’s, R-Englewood, alleged improper voting procedure on Senate Bill 03-236 (Referendum A’s $10 billion water bonding initiative). Fitz-Gerald said, “Important issues could be considered illegitimate because the senate president failed to follow procedure. Rules and procedure are important both in Colorado and Texas. Republicans need to stop ‘gerrymandering’ and do something useful.”

In other news, newly elected Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper acknowledged in his inaugural address that the city was facing a severe fiscal crisis.

“We have lost tens of thousands of jobs and our city budget has been decimated,” Hickenlooper said. “But there is no obvious villain for us to target. It’s not as easy as that … and I’m not a lone sheriff, facing outlaws by myself.”

Hickenlooper instead argued that government’s duty was to “provide the greatest good for the greatest number of people” and with a new mayor, a new auditor and largely new city council, “…there was a palpable hunger for change.”

Among the inaugural events, Hickenlooper was also treated to a concert given by the Children’s Inaugural Choir at the Boettcher Concert Hall.

Rachael Wright is the author of the Captain Savva Mystery series. She has dual degrees in Political Science and History from Colorado Mesa University and is a contributing writer to Colorado Politics and The Gazette.