I run the news department for Montana Public Radio, based in Missoula.

Articles

Making health policy visible...on the radio

For my fellowship project, I aimed to compare two other states to my home state of Colorado’s approach to the Affordable Care Act. Showing the law actually creating new opportunities in Colorado would be easy. Showing the law not working in a state that's resisting it would be tougher.

In Michigan, Businessmen And Politicians Agree On Medicaid

GOP leaders say opposition to Obamacare is their No. 1 campaign issue for the midterm election. At the same time, a growing number of Republican states now embrace a major provision of the law — expanding Medicaid, government-funded health benefits for the poor.

Colorado Takes Health Plans To People Shopping For Groceries

The White House has set aside more than a quarter of a billion dollars nationally to pay navigators who can give people face-to-face help — in buying coverage and in calculating subsidies to make it more affordable. Colorado has almost $24 per person to spend on outreach.

Despite Big Market In Florida, Obamacare Is A Hard Sell

Florida politicians erected roadblocks to the ACA from the beginning — from joining in the 2010 lawsuit to thwart the law to placing restrictions on what insurance helpers called navigators can tell people seeking advice. Even so, advocates have been trying to get the word out.

Tracking the Distribution of Obamacare Benefits

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) may be the law of the land, but it looks like Americans' ability to to access the benefits it promises will vary greatly depending on where they live. Only a minority have agreed to implement the federal law as written.