skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Monday, February 17, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

At Least 11 Dead After Severe Flooding Sweeps The South; Hundreds Of Thousands Without Power; Abandoned Mine Land program frozen as Appalachia faces severe flooding; Solar power gives MN resort new blood, new life.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Top Trump officials set to meet with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia over the Ukraine war. The GOP budget resolution is at risk as moderates weigh out consequences. New York City Mayor Eric Adams says he's "going nowhere."

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rural America struggles with opioids and homelessness in unexpected ways, Colorado's Lariat Ditch could help spur local recreation, and book deliveries revive rural communities hit by Hurricane Helene.

CO's "Young Invincibles" Find Benefits in Health Exchange

play audio
Play

Thursday, February 13, 2014   

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – More than 63,000 Coloradans have signed up for health coverage under the Colorado Health Exchange since enrollment opened in October.

Among them are a population of the state's 20-somethings – too old to be covered under their parents' plans, but still working on finding employment with benefits.

Craig Smith of Grand Junction, a 27-year-old college student, is among them.

"Most people my age kind of think they're invincible and, you know, to some extent my age group is healthier, obviously,” he says. “But my manager at work was diagnosed with cancer and he's only a couple years older than I am. Like, what if that happened to me?"

Smith receives $169 a month in a subsidy to offset the cost of his coverage.

According to the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative, people younger than 30 traditionally have been one of the largest groups of uninsured Americans, because many entry-level jobs don't include health care and their wages can't pay for coverage on their own.

Patrick Jones of Denver, also 27, left a job at a software company to pursue a different career.

His income qualified him to receive Medicaid under the state's expansion of the program.

"I can take my classes online during the day and serve tables at nighttime and pursue a new career without having to worry about health insurance for a year," he says.

Both Jones and Smith say that without health coverage, an unexpected serious illness or accident could set them on the path of financial ruin even before starting their careers.





get more stories like this via email

more stories
Data from Indiana's Marion County Public Health Department show of the 124 overdose deaths in April-June 2024, 71 were white men, 36 were Black men and 6 were Hispanic women. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

The incidence of drug overdose is decreasing in Indiana and one reason could be the efforts of an organization offering free training to anyone willin…


Social Issues

play sound

By Kim Kobersmith for The Daily Yonder.Broadcast version by Brett Peveto for South Carolina News Service for the Daily Yonder-Public News Service Coll…

Environment

play sound

Wyoming is one of several Western states where some lawmakers arguing states should have more control of the federally managed public lands within the…


Environment

play sound

By Amy McDermott for the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.Broadcast version by Mark Richardson for for California News Service reporting…

Libraries are tailored to their local communities, Varga says, such as a local library in Virginia Beach offering surfboard rentals. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

February is Library Lovers Month - and libraries across the Commonwealth are encouraging their long-time and new patrons to celebrate. Lisa Varga…

Social Issues

play sound

According to the Immigration Policy Tracking Project, the Trump administration has taken 130 actions on immigration so far this term. Groups in …

Environment

play sound

A Utah legislator has introduced a bill to increase transparency for consumers in the Beehive State when purchasing cultivated meat products…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021