DENVER – Groups are gathering on the steps of the state Capitol today to protest efforts by some lawmakers to repeal Connect for Health Colorado, the state's health-insurance marketplace.

Adam Fox, the director of strategic engagement of the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative says the move would limit Coloradans' access to health coverage, noting the marketplace helped more than 200,000 Coloradans sign up for private health insurance in 2016 and is seeing record numbers of people enrolling this year.

"And if that goes away, Colorado will lose control of this enrollment system and many of the supports that had been created and customized for Coloradans," he said.

Connect for Health Colorado created a statewide network to help people navigate enrollment in person and helps consumers track which policies cover a particular doctor or prescription drug. Critics of the marketplace claim the costs are unsustainable, but Fox argues Colorado would have to spend millions transitioning to the federal Healthcare.gov system.

Senate Bill 3, sponsored by Senators Jim Smallwood and Patrick Neville, both from Douglas County, would give the marketplace a year to wind down business and turn over any remaining money to the state treasurer. Fox says closing the exchange would take control of the insurance market away from the state, leaving Coloradans subject to the whims of Congress as they debate how to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

"If we were to repeal Colorado's marketplace, it really leaves Coloradans no resource for transparent shopping and comparison of health insurance," he added.

He says bipartisan stakeholders recommended creating a state insurance marketplace long before Obamacare was passed. The Repeal Colorado Health Benefit Exchange bill was set to be considered today by the Senate's Finance Committee, but is likely to be rescheduled for next week.


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PHOENIX - They are irritating, they are unwanted - and now, robocalls are illegal. Consumer watchdog groups hope a looming deadline will finally force U.S. phone companies to take stopping robocalls seriously.

A new report from the Arizona Public Interest Research Group Education Fund found that only one-third of the largest mobile and home phone-service providers nationwide have installed the technology available to block unwanted marketing calls, which can arrive dozens of times a day.

Arizona PIRG executive director Diane Brown said the calls are not only frustrating - but can also be costly.

"In addition to being annoying," she said, "illegal robocalls cost Americans $3 billion annually in wasted time, and another $10 billion annually in fraud."

Brown said starting in June, all U.S.-based phone companies were required to install software that blocks so-called "spoof" calls, when the caller ID doesn't identify the actual caller. The report said many phone-service providers are dragging their feet.

However, Brown said another deadline is on the calendar this month - and it's aimed squarely at forcing the telemarketers perpetrating the scams to clean up their act.

"On Sept. 28, phone providers are required to block calls from companies that haven't at least reported their status to the Federal Communications Commission," she said.

Of the 3,000 telecommunications providers regulated by the FCC, the study found only 17% have completely implemented anti-robocall technology. Around 27% have partially applied it, and 56% said they're developing proprietary software to block illegal calls. Brown said if you are still receiving them, you can report calls directly to the FCC.

"If a consumer receives a robocall," she said, "they can register their phone number, and also issue a report at www.donotcall.gov."

The full report is online at ArizonaPIRGEdFund.org.

By Adilia Watson. Broadcast version by Suzanne Potter. Reporting for the Daily Yonder-Arkansas News Service Collaboration

Consumer Reports, in partnership with a coalition of partners, is seeking better data on internet speed, reliability and affordability.

Today, Consumer Reports launched "Let's Broadband Together" in partnership with a coalition of groups across the United States, including the Rural Assembly, a program of the Center for Rural Strategies, which also publishes the Daily Yonder.

The project is asking consumers to submit their internet bills and download speeds to a national database that researchers and consumer advocates will use to analyze what American families pay for internet access and what their money buys them.

The rural implications of this effort are apparent. At least 60% of rural residents have said high-speed internet is a problem where they live, according to data from Pew Research Center.

"Broadband access is one of the most pressing civil rights issues of our time," said Whitney Kimball Coe, coordinator of the Rural Assembly. "For too long, rural places and Native communities have been on the losing end of the digital divide, unable to fully participate in the economic, social and cultural forces shaping our world today. The Rural Assembly is excited to partner on the Let's Broadband Together project to drive greater transparency and accountability around achieving quality, high-speed and affordable internet."

To participate in the campaign, consumers will be asked to share a monthly internet bill showing cost of service, to complete a speed test, and to fill in a short survey. The entire process is estimated to take about seven minutes. The goal of the "Let's Broadband Together" effort is to "find out what we're really getting for our money and advocate for a better internet that costs less," according to a Consumer Reports press release.

The data will be aggregated and analyzed to develop benchmarks around the cost of service and speed. The project will help analysts understand how and why prices and performance vary. No personally identifiable information will be recorded as part of the project's analysis, the press release stated. Participants will receive a free Consumer Reports membership and access to educational materials about broadband reliability and affordability.

Other organizations participating in the campaign include the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, Color of Change, Public Knowledge, the American Library Association, the Open Technology Institute and many more.

Consumer Reports, formed in 1936, focuses on empowering consumers and creating "truth, transparency, and fairness in the marketplace," according to its website. The organization's president, Maria Tellado, said internet access is a necessity, not a luxury.

"Broadband must be available, accessible, and affordable for all, including low-income households and rural areas," she said. "For too long, the true cost and quality of internet service have been hidden and obscured. We want to shine a light on what's really happening, so every American can have the quality internet they need to succeed today and into the future."

Partners in the project hope that better data will ultimately lead to smarter policy. Historically, official government tallies on internet access have relied on self-reported data from service providers, which tends to provide a limited view on availability and overlook issues with reliability and affordability.

Joshua Stager, deputy director of Broadband and Competition Policy at the Open Technology Institute, explained that this survey will allow organizations to hear directly from consumers.

"The federal government still does not collect this data," he said, "which often leaves policymakers and the public in the dark."

The goal of the campaign is to gather at least 30,000 consumer submissions by the end of September. You can participate by submitting your bill and speed test data at www.consumerreports.org/upload/broadband/?EXTKEY=BBA17EEC1C.

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Adilia Watson wrote this article for The Daily Yonder.


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ALBANY, N.Y. -- A bill to bolster the New York Secure Choice Savings Program will reach Gov. Kathy Hochul's desk in the coming months.

Proponents of the measure said its approval will allow New Yorkers to save for retirement more easily. The legislation would apply to companies with at least 10 employees that don't already provide a workplace retirement savings option.

Through payroll deductions, workers could build up an individual retirement account through the state-facilitated program, at little or no cost to the company.

Bill Ferris, New York state legislative representative for AARP, said input they collected from more than 200 small businesses in the state without a savings program showed how the legislation will help companies and their employees.

"The number one and number two reasons why these small employers in New York did not offer a 401(k) or some other type of retirement savings plan, is because they felt it was too complicated and too expensive for them to do," Ferris reported.

Part of the bill includes automatic enrollment, which another AARP study found can lead to a 90% participation rate. The research also showed without an automatic opt-in, the rate of enrollment drops to 70%, and people of color, young employees, women and low-wage workers sign up less frequently.

Nearly four in five of the surveyed business owners in the state think the updated program should be made law. Ferris noted AARP New York and the bill's proponents hope the measure will empower workers to invest in their financial futures.

"This program clearly does that for New Yorkers, especially those who get up every day and go to work and don't have an opportunity to save for their retirement," Ferris asserted.

The governor has until Dec. 31 to review the expansion, as well as all other bills passed in the state Legislature this session. If signed into law, the measure could help more than two million workers in the private sector save for retirement.