Independence Institute president Jon Caldara on Friday filed a ballot proposal that would allow the state to reject mandates imposed by a health care bill being debated in Washington.
“I think it’s time for Colorado to stand up and defend itself against ‘Obama Care,’ ” Caldara said. “It’s our goal to make Colorado a sanctuary state for good health care.”
The measure was filed with the Legislative Council, the first in a series of steps before a proposal makes it way to the ballot.
Caldara said the ballot measure would be moot if Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter and the Democratic-controlled legislature enact similar provisions outlined in the initiative, but he doubts that will happen.
“Part of this is to call on people in this building to protect Colorado from mandates from the federal government,” Caldara said at a news conference at the state Capitol.
The Independence Institute and state Rep. Cindy Acree, R-Aurora, are holding a rally at noon Tuesday on the west steps of the Capitol to promote the proposal.
Ritter, when later asked if he thought the measure was constitutional, said he hadn’t seen the proposal.
Ritter last week dropped his re-election bid, but his campaign website says the governor “didn’t wait for the feds to reform health care.”
“He has initiated a number of efforts to improve access to quality healthcare for all Coloradans, and to stem skyrocketing health care and insurance costs,” according to the website.
The initiative is similar to one on the ballot in Arizona and being proposed in about 10 other states. It gives citizens the “right of health care choice.”
Under the proposal, neither the state nor federal government could mandate that someone purchase an insurance product or participate in any public or private health care plan or benefit. It also allows cross-state purchasing of insurance coverage.
“It’s amazing that the federal government doesn’t force me to buy home insurance, doesn’t force me to buy life insurance or catastrophic insurance or an umbrella policy,” Caldara said, “yet of my own wisdom I purchase these things.”
When was asked about auto insurance, which is mandatory, Caldara noted that plenty of Coloradans break that law.
Lynn Bartels: 303-954-5327 or lbartels@denverpost.com
