A bill introduced in the state Senate on Friday would repeal a measure from 2011 that established health care exchanges in Colorado if the controversial Democratic health care reform bill is found unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. And Rep. Marsha Looper, R-Calhan, is the primary sponsor in the state House of Representatives.
Senate Bill 53 takes aim at Senate Bill 200, which was dubbed “Amycare” by its opponents last year after its sponsor, House Majority Leader Amy Stephens, R-Monument, carried it in the House. It has become a central issue in the primary race between Stephens and Looper, in large part because the bill infuriated many grassroots Republicans who say “Amycare” implements the national Democratic measure, which many Republicans call “Obamacare.”
The national measure is called the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and requires states to either establish health care exchanges of their own or be forced to adopt a national model.
Several states, including Colorado, sued the federal government, arguing the law is unconstitutional. It is scheduled to be heard by the Supreme Court in March.
Stephens dismissed SB 53 out of hand, and said it wouldn’t even make it to the floor of the Senate. She pointed out that it had been assigned to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, which is chaired by Sen. Betty Boyd, D-Lakewood. Boyd was the Senate sponsor of the very health care exchange bill that Looper wants to repeal.
Last year, of the nine members of the Health and Human Services Committee, the five Democrats voted for the bill and the four Republicans opposed it on the floor of the Senate.
“This is pure political posturing,” Stephens said.
Though she didn’t directly accuse Looper of anything, she said, “I’m not surprised as to who in the House signed on.”
Stephens added that she has been endorsed in the primary by Attorney General John Suthers, who signed on to the multi-state lawsuit against “Obamacare.”
Looper, who voted against the bill last year, issued a statement on the bill, but didn’t mention Stephens or the primary. She wrote that SB 200 is the same thing as “Obamacare,” and should be taken off the books.
“This is another big government, Democrat solution that will bankrupt our state and nation,” Looper said.
“The federal government, not the State of Colorado, will have full authority over the exchange,” Looper wrote. “Total control of our health care will reside in Washington, D.C.”
Stephens has maintained that her bill did the exact opposite. She has said that creating a state exchange allowed Colorado to opt out of the federal exchange model that otherwise would have been forced onto the state.
But the state solution is no better than the federal one, said Republican Sen. Tim Neville, who is carrying SB 53 in the Senate.
“You have an 800-pound gorilla from the federal government, and a 200-pound gorilla in the state government, but you don’t want either one in your house,” said Neville.
This is the best news I’ve heard in a long, long time. Amycare gives Obamacare free sailing into Colorado. One of the provisions of Amycare allows Colorado to share our private medical information with other databases. The Colorado database was established by HB10-1330 and the national database was established in the Stimulus bill.
Too bad Rep Looper doesn’t realize that if state’s don’t implement the exchanges on their own then the Fed gov’t steps in and does it for them…. You may not like the idea of the exchange but it’s better for CO if CO does it. And by the way, Rep Looper – the idea and concept of state exchanges is a Republican one….always has been, always will be.
Good for you, Rep. Looper! The way to fight Obamacare is not to yield to heavy handed Fed. compulsion. Amycare simply rolls over, signalling an unwillingness to stand on principle. So thank you!
@ Brendan. Please do your homework and read all documents related to the health exchange. All it does is strengthen obamacare as the state is beholden to the golden federal calf with no exceptions! Here are a couple of stories that may help you find your way to the answers of Sb11-200 that must be stopped!!! http://vetthegov.com/stories/tag/sb11-200
@brendan, so with your logic, if someone threatens to shoot you, you should shoot yourself instead, ’cause it’s better if you do it.
Obamacare funnels federal dollars and control through state exchanges–and if the Secretary of HHS doesn’t like the state rules, the state is forced to change. Where is the control?
[...] civil unions, a political mailer painted Stephens as having supported Obama, Looper introduced a bill at the Capitol to repeal Amycare (the bill died in committee), and the pair have tussled plenty of times at local GOP [...]
This is as far from Republican as they come. Just because Amy has an (R) after her name does not mean that this bill was anything that the majority of Republicans would approve of; if they study and understand what it is doing. Al is right on the mark with his comment! Amy has just turned into an Obama Democrat. Just look at the votes for and against Amycare. That is a clue as to what some other Republicans believe. I feel betrayed by Amy Stephens, Larry Liston, John Suthers and any other Republican that has been duped or participated in this stripping of freedom. Do some research before you believe the line of “The federal government, not the State of Colorado, will have full authority over the exchange,” How does Amycare change that? It doesn’t!