Ritter revs up rural health care panel
Chris Barge, Rocky Mountain News
Published August 8, 2007 at midnight
A smiling Gov. Bill Ritter sat at a table in front of the west steps of the state Captitol this morning and signed an executive order establishing a panel that will distribute $7.5 million in health care grants for rural Coloradans.
The funds will be provided as a charitable gift over the next six years by UnitedHealth Group, which is the state's second-largest health care provider, behind Kaiser Permanente.
In his remarks, Ritter pointed out that four out of Colorado's 64 counties do not have a primary care physician. Seven more counties are without a physician accepting new Medicaid clients. And 20 counties, including 14 rural counties, lack a hospital.
The newly established Colorado Rural Health Care Grants Council will direct the funds toward addressing those and other rural needs.
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