health
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9 Colorado hospitals at risk of closing due to Medicaid cuts
The $900 billion in Medicaid cuts over the next decade could threaten the viability of more than 400 hospitals nationally and at least nine in Colorado, a new report has found. The hospitals span the Front Range and rural communities, from Denver Health — the region’s primary safety-net provider — to smaller hospitals in places…
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Unsustainable: How Colorado’s Medicaid spending exploded
The state’s Medicaid program — which covers about one in four Coloradans — is poised for its largest single-year jump in at least two decades, with officials proposing a $2.3 billion increase, even as lawmakers face a $1.5 billion budget shortfall. The data shows Medicaid enrollment has grown steadily, while spending has increased far more…
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Measles outbreak prompts 80 exclusions at Broomfield schools
Eighty unvaccinated students and staff at Broomfield middle and high schools are not allowed to attend class in the wake of a measles outbreak, state health officials confirmed Tuesday. The majority of the exclusions are students, but they also include several staff members, Hope Shuler, a spokesperson with the Colorado Department of Public Health and…
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Colorado board delays vote on banning soda purchases with SNAP benefits
The Colorado Board of Human Services voted to delay its decision on whether to allow Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients to use benefits to buy soft drinks. Under the “Healthy Choice Waiver,” SNAP recipients would be prohibited from using benefits to purchase sweetened beverages with less than 50% fruit or vegetable juice by volume, such…
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Colorado declares measles outbreak after third case linked to Broomfield school
An unvaccinated Adams County child who tested positive for measles is tied to a case from Broomfield High School last month, leading state health officials to declare an outbreak. Colorado has four measles cases to date, amid a national outbreak. The other cases are in Broomfield and Arapahoe counties. The latest case, state officials said,…
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Federal audit finds $77.8M in improper Medicaid payments for Colorado autism therapy
Colorado’s Medicaid payments for a therapeutic program for individuals with autism increased 172% in four years, prompting a federal audit by the Office of the Inspector General. Auditors found Colorado made $77.8 million in improper Medicaid payments for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to children. ABA is a therapeutic approach that centers on managing symptoms by…
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Broomfield High School keeps 26 students out after confirmed measles case
After state officials confirmed a measles case last week at Broomfield High School, 26 students are not allowed to attend class, the district said Monday. On Friday, school officials requested students who are not vaccinated against measles to not attend class. “In order to attend school, you must present proof of measles immunity,” Broomfield High…
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As measles cases rise nationally, Colorado braces for imported infections
Colorado has had just one measles case this year, but that doesn’t mean Dr. Michelle Barron sleeps well at night. With spring break around the corner, Barron worries out-of-state travelers will bring more than their luggage to the Centennial State. “My big worry right now is DIA (Denver International Airport), said Barron, senior medical director…
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Colorado Medicaid spending doubled over the past decade, study finds
Spending by Colorado’s Department of Health Care Policy and Financing reached $16 billion in 2025 — a 101% increase from 2015 — while Medicaid enrollment has returned to nearly its 2015 level, according to an analysis by a think tank. Pointing to 182 health care bills Colorado lawmakers enacted since 2019, the report from the…
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ACA enrollment in Colorado sees slight dip amid rising costs
Despite handwringing over enhanced federal subsidies going away for many Coloradans enrolled in health insurance on the state’s marketplace, officials reported Friday just a 2% enrollment dip. More than 277,000 Coloradans enrolled in health insurance through the Affordable Care Act — colloquially known as “Obamacare.” The decline followed five years of consecutive growth, state officials…