Two Weeks, Two Publications: A Productive April at CHI

It has been a busy two weeks at the Colorado Health Institute with the release of our first publication last week on legalized marijuana and a new publication focused on disparities in insurance status using data from the Colorado Health Access Survey (CHAS) slated for this week.  

Early Lessons from Legalized Marijuana, written by director of community health policy Sara Schmitt and researched by research assistant Kevin Butcher, analyzes Colorado’s regulatory and public policy decisions for the state’s newly legalized retail marijuana industry. With bills pertaining to marijuana moving through the legislature now, our work on marijuana will be ongoing. For updates on all health related bills that CHI is watching, tune in later in the week for Kevin’s bill roundup.

This week marks the release of a new CHAS report. The brief details CHI’s regression analysis of 2013 CHAS data to explore the factors contributing to health insurance disparities between Hispanic and non-Hispanic adults in Colorado. Be sure to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook to keep up with the release of the new brief.

CHI also hosted a meeting of its Safety Net Advisory Committee (SNAC) last week. The group met to discuss emergency department utilization rates among Medicaid enrollees using data from the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing as well as the CHAS. You can find the presentation from the meeting as well as the slides from past meetings here.

We don’t just write about our analyses – we also present on them – and presentations will be another theme for the upcoming week.

This Wednesday, research analyst Natalie Triedman will co-present 2013 Colorado Health Report Card information to the Hispanic Chamber Education Foundation with Kelly Dunkin, Vice President of Philanthropy, from the Colorado Health Foundation. The presentation will focus on Report Card results specific to the Hispanic population in Colorado. You can download data from the 2013 Report Card and read analysis of this year’s findings on our website.

On Thursday, director of research on coverage and access Jeff Bontrager and senior analyst Rebecca Alderfer will present during a plenary session and two break-out sessions at the Colorado Hospital Association’s Rural Hospital Conference being held in Colorado Springs. CHI’s sessions will cover trends that Colorado’s rural communities will likely see in health and health care over the coming years and the consumer’s experience with Colorado’s health care system based on data from the 2013 CHAS.