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STAYING THE COURSE Dear Friends of The Colorado Trust,Remember a year ago when it was a tough sell to get the media to pay attention to health care? It was beyond imagination that in a few short months' time we would be overwhelmed by the amount of news coverage about health care and reform. And while these news stories run the gamut, the possibility of achieving health care reform remains a very real possibility. At the same time, we have increasing numbers of individuals and groups working together in Colorado pursuing new ideas and advocating for an improved health care system. Such a strong, united front is essential if we are to successfully weather the current challenges of realizing a better system of health care, particularly in this daunting economic environment. The Colorado Trust is working to help meet some of the increasing, immediate needs in communities hit hardest by the recession, even as we remain focused on achieving more systemic changes to benefit greater numbers of people into the future. In this edition of CommunityConnections, you'll read how Doctors Care and Rocky Mountain Youth Clinics are working hard to serve a growing number of people who otherwise cannot access health care. And you'll learn about progress being made by the innovative San Luis Valley Health Access Program to provide health care services to those who find themselves without employer coverage. This work is critical as demand for state "safety net" services – such as Medicaid, CHP+ and food stamps – are at an all-time high. Among the long-term strategies The Trust supports is a new effort to increase broad public awareness, understanding and support for the realization of a better system of providing health coverage and care. As well, we want to ensure that new policies, regulations and programs required to achieve health access for everyone in our state are implemented effectively, and that the commitment to such widespread change remains solid for years to come. For our grantees, please watch for an online survey that will be sent out soon to current and former Trust grantees. Your input will help us to better understand the networks you have in place to achieve access to health for all Coloradans. Responses to the survey will be kept confidential and used by The Trust to inform our development of upcoming grant opportunities. We hope to hear back from many of our grantees in response to this survey as our connections with you, and your relationships with many other people, coalitions and networks are the strongest resource we have in working to achieve a healthier state. Sincerely,
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