Healthcare

The federal budget law passed in July 2025, known as HR1 or the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” will have profoundly negative  impacts on health care access and affordability, especially in rural Colorado. HR1 is beginning to show its impact with higher insurance premiums, but more significant changes will be phased in over the next seven years including higher uninsured rates, even more unaffordable premiums and out-of-pocket costs, and the closure of hospitals and clinics.

As federal and state budget cuts loom, maintaining and building upon the progress Colorado has made to support older adults will require more intentionality and dedication to creating an inclusive state where everyone has the ability to age in the way they’d prefer.

The reasons for Colorado’s budget crises are multifold. Yet, an undeniably significant portion of our challenges stem from growing Medicaid costs, particularly those attributable to a rapidly growing population of aging Coloradans.

The Bell has developed a Home Care Cost Model for older adults, an important tool for researchers, advocates, and decision makers, as they strive to understand the implications of policy choices on the care economy, its workers, and the older Coloradans who rely upon it.

Despite their importance, the caring workforce remains undervalued and without the tools to meet the growing need for care. This analysis provides the foundation for understanding the larger caring workforce, opportunities and challenges they face, and potential avenues for future research and analysis.

We explore how specific issues within Colorado’s Medicaid policy financially impair aging Coloradans and drive caring workforce shortages.

The first of its kind, this new report provides deep data analysis and research to identify gaps and also provides a long-term benchmark to measure future progress.

To better understand the overall health of older Coloradans, we explore self-reported health statuses and a variety of measures related to affordability, access, and preventative care.

To understand the financial security of older Coloradans, we examine income and expenses and the role these two play in fostering healthy aging.

“I know this sounds strange, but aging in community with a disability is really a new phenomenon.”