Can other communities copy the Grand Junction model of low-cost, high-quality, near-universal healthcare?
Some doctors in this Colorado city of just over 53,000 say yes, others no. But clearly, some parts could be replicated elsewhere.
The House of Representatives has included in its version of healthcare reform a provision allowing the creation of nonprofit, consumer-operated insurance cooperatives as an alternative to the ballyhooed and cursed public option.
“This says they want to create a potential place in the world for systems like (this),” says Dr. Michael Pramenko, a leading advocate who practices with Primary Care Partners in Grand Junction. “It says that if you don’t like the public option, and want another way, here is your opportunity.”
