HB21-1232 Would Widen the Health Disparity Gap Among Communities of Color

The Mile High Medical Society (MHMS) was founded in 2015 because we saw an urgent need for Black doctors in the Rocky Mountain region. The number of Black doctors and Black medical students has dramatically decreased in recent years – not only in Colorado but across the country – at a time when we need them the most. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us that there is still more work to do to close the disparity gap in health care among communities of color. The Mile High Medical Society works every day to eliminate these disparities through advocacy, education and meaningful health policy. 

That is why MHMC is concerned about HB21-1232 – the Colorado State Option – that is currently under consideration in the Colorado State Senate. 

This bill would hurt the very communities that proponents intend to help. Fixing our health care system in order to help those most at risk access cost-effective care requires strengthening our existing system, and attracting and retaining more doctors to the field.

African Americans are less likely than white Americans to use a primary care doctor for routine care; instead, they frequently rely on emergency rooms for their medical needs. But racial disparities exist even in emergency room care. A 2019 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that Black and Hispanic patients were more likely to be transported to hospitals that serve more poor or uninsured patients rather than the nearest emergency room.

The drastic rate cuts proposed in HB21-1232 puts emergency room care at risk. Emergency room doctors will be driven out of the state, making it even more difficult for African Americans to receive care. 

Many physicians within the Black medical community know firsthand the impact that lack of quality health care and racial health disparities can have. Some of us grew up in households where preventable medical issues turned into chronic conditions because proper health care was inaccessible, unaffordable, or both. It’s what brought us to crowded emergency rooms late at night. Ultimately, it’s what led many of us to the field – to give care to those who need it most.

Colorado needs doctors. Between retirement from the profession and burnout fueled by the pandemic, the Centennial State is facing an alarming shortage of physicians.  HB21-1232 would make Colorado’s doctor shortage worse by mandating participation in state option. This is a direct threat to communities of color and their access to care. 

We simply cannot provide proper medical care for our most underserved populations without a strong workforce – where doctors are abundant, and patients have the ability to get the medical attention they need when they need it, from medical professionals that they can relate to. The danger of HB21-1232 is that is drives doctors out of Colorado instead of incentivizing them to practice here.

MHMS is proud of the work we do to mentor and shepherd the next generation of Black physicians. The Mile High Medical Society has given millions of dollars in full-ride scholarships, and we help train the some of the best and brightest medical students at the University of Colorado’s Anschutz Medical Center – one of the top level one trauma centers in the country. 

The students we work with have compassionate hearts, and are eager to go out into their communities and serve those in need. They are our future cardiologists, neurologists, obstetricians and pediatricians – those who will help us build a stronger health care system and close the racial disparity gap. 

If we want to create a better future for aspiring Black doctors and ensure communities of color have access to high quality and affordable care, Colorado lawmakers should re-think their approach. HB21-1232 is not the solution to improving our health care system, it is its own problem.  

Dr. Johnny E. Johnson is an OB/GYN in Denver and the president of the Mile High Medical Society.