Correction: An earlier version of Yellow Scene’s 2026 Primary Election Endorsements incorrectly identified Heidi Henkel as the incumbent in House District 33. The incumbent is Rep. Kenny Nguyen. The error was corrected shortly after publication.

Editorial endorsements are a longstanding function of journalism. Yet as media has consolidated and nonprofit restrictions have reshaped the industry, fewer newsrooms continue the practice.

Yellow Scene believes election endorsements remain an important public service. Our editorial board debates the issues, examines policy and records in depth, and does not lightly arrive at endorsement decisions, particularly in closely contested races. This guide focuses on races within Yellow Scene’s Boulder County and North Metro coverage region rather than attempting to cover every contest statewide. Over 26 years, Yellow Scene’s Election Guide has received multiple journalism awards, including three first-place honors, and earned a reputation for asking difficult questions and examining candidates beyond campaign slogans.

U.S. Senate

John Hickenlooper v. Julie Gonzales

The Pick: Julie Gonzales

Julie Gonzales

John Hickenlooper

State Democrats deemed this the most contested statewide race this spring. At the state assembly, activist turned politician Julie Gonzales took home nearly 75% of the delegate share. Gonzales, who has been working in the Colorado Senate since 2018, will face incumbent US Senator John Hickenlooper. While the Hickenlooper campaign leans into terms like “grassroots” and “independent perspective,” his lengthy résumé as the former mayor of Denver, Colorado governor, and current senator tells a different story.

Having taken over $500,000 in AIPAC money, Hickenlooper’s narrative conflicts with his status as a political insider. Some argue Hickenlooper has been unable to meet the political moment, voting with Trump 11% of the time in his first term and saying Democrats need to “select our battles.” In 2020, an ethics committee ruled he violated state law by flying in a donor’s private plane.

Gonzales has decried the war in Gaza, pledged to back antitrust enforcement to break up monopolies, and supported Medicare for all, positions that demonstrate she has the energy and fresh perspectives the party needs.

Governorship

Michael Bennett v. Phil Weiser

The Pick: Phil Weiser

Phil Weiser

This race features two prominent Colorado politicians vying for higher office, starting with Michael Bennet, a former school superintendent turned U.S. senator. During his years in Washington, Bennet has drawn criticism for confirming eight of Donald Trump’s nominees and for his extensive campaign support from major donors and political action committees.

Michael Bennet

He has accepted over $300,000 in AIPAC funds and holds a significant edge in super PAC support. In fact, a May report showed Bennet tallying over $4 million, including substantial “dark money” from undisclosed donors, compared to Weiser’s just over $1 million. Policy-wise, Bennet’s affordability platform caps housing costs at 30% of household income, and he champions a public Medicare option alongside childcare tax credits. However, these are proposals that some progressive Colorado Democrats might view as lukewarm or tepid at best.

In contrast, Phil Weiser enters the race as the state’s former attorney general and one of the few Colorado leaders boasting a rising approval rating. As AG, Weiser built a reputation as a consistent fighter during the Trump administration, taking the federal government to court when it threatened funding for hospitals, Social Security, and Medicare. He has also leaned heavily into consumer protection, returning millions of dollars to Coloradans by taking on corporate landlords, fraudsters, and major pharmaceutical companies.

Attorney General

Hetal Doshi v. Michael Dougherty v. Jena Griswold v. David Seligman

The Pick: David Seligman

David Seligman

Jena Griswold

Jena Griswold, current CO Secretary of State, has leveraged internal polling to claim her campaign is running away with this race. Griswold claims a lack of familiarity with the other candidates is solidifying her position among voters. In her time in office, she attempted to remove Trump from the 2024 ballot and urged the Supreme Court to remove him as president. She is hoping her name recognition and history of standing up to the administration will win her the race.

Michael Dougherty has perhaps the most impressive experience of these candidates. He has a string of high-profile, Colorado DA endorsements. In Manhattan, he led the sex crimes unit at the DA’s office. In Colorado, he developed a DV response team and a vehicular response team. He prosecuted the King Soopers mass shooting and the Boulder Pearl street firebombing.

Michael Dougherty

Dougherty, however, has a lackluster vision for AI, vaguely promising to enact “smart policies” at a time when data centers are contaminating water in states facing droughts. Dougherty has faced harsh criticism for his decision to neither press charges nor launch a criminal investigation into the death of Jeanette Alatorre. Furthermore, he remained silent when the city moved to illegally block access to the body camera footage. While his extensive experience is undeniable, Dougherty’s platform ultimately plays it too safe and misses the vision Colorado needs.

Hetal Doshi

Hetal Doshi is a first-generation American who has been an assistant attorney in CO and a Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division. Her career has focused on breaking up big tech monopolies and protecting Colorado from Trump’s funding cuts. In Colorado, though she supports investing in “entrepreneurs working in tech,” a position at odds with her previous work against monopolies. Doshi also maintains a stance against oligarchs, a group Seligman has promised to go after. Whereas Seligman’s proposals are comprehensive, Doshi’s are vague.

David Seligman is the director of the nonprofit Towards Justice, which he built to support labor rights. He was the Supreme Court Chair of the Harvard Law Review. Seligman is more of an outsider than the other candidates, and it shows in his policy proposals. He’s focusing on breaking up tech monopolies and holding corporations that exploit workers and drive up housing and healthcare costs accountable, and drive up housing and healthcare costs. Affordability is one of the biggest political issues facing Coloradans, and people need elected officials who will fight for it fiercely.

For that reason, we think that Seligman’s ambition makes him the strongest candidate.

Secretary of State

Jessie Danielson v. Amanda Gonzales

The Pick: Jessie Danielson

Jessie Danielson

As the first Latina and openly queer recorder in Jefferson County, Amanda Gonzalez would certainly bring a fresh voice to the state office. However, in contrast to Danielson, her experience is underwhelming.

Amanda Gonzalez

At her nonprofit, Jessie Danielson helped develop the bills that would become voter modernization acts in Colorado. Appointed by the governor at the time, she expanded mail-in ballots and access for those with disabilities. She also helped codify abortion into Colorado law.

Her track record makes her the best option for Democrats in this race.

Congressional District 1

Diana Degette v. Wanda James v. Melat Kiros

The Pick: Melat Kiros

Melat Kiros

Diana DeGette

This district features three candidates. Diana DeGette, the incumbent, has a great track record on climate but has come under fire for tiptoeing around the war in Gaza, as well as taking corporate money. 

Wanda James

On the other hand, Wanda James built the first Black-owned dispensary in Colorado and serves on the CU Board of Regents. Her campaign focuses heavily on serving Black and Brown communities and peaceful foreign policy. She is, however, in favor of “smart, technology-driven” border security, which is linguistic cover for technologies that harvest biometrics and drive racial profiling. She has a weaker position on combating ICE and supports entrepreneurs like herself. Her withdrawal from assembly and switch to petition also signal a lack of local support.

Melat Kiros is the Democratic Socialist candidate. She is championing the types of policies that have won the mayoral election in New York and have launched Graham Platner into political stardom in Maine. She supports federally subsidizing 30% of all long-term house developments, universal childcare, an end to military aid to Israel, and a zero-emissions US grid.

Democrats who want to see the continued growth of a bolder party with a clear vision for the future should vote for Kiros.

Congressional District 8

Shannon Bird v. Evan Munsing v. Manny Rutinel

The Pick: Shannon Bird

Shannon Bird

Manny Rutinel, a rising star in the party, tore through the assembly process, garnering over 90% of the delegate vote. He is a fresh, young voice whose background as an economist for the Army Corps of Engineers promises to combat Colorado voters’ most important issue: affordability.

Manny Rutinel

Evan Munsing

Evan Munsing also has a military background. The former Marine’s bare-bones platform and lack of vision on immigration suggest that the candidate’s plans may be under-conceived.

Incumbent from the 29th District, Bird was ranked the most effective Colorado lawmaker in the ‘23-’24 term by the independent organization, Center for Effective Lawmaking. She is now running to face off the Gabe Evans, the incumbent in District 8. That effectiveness is reflected in the detailed, clear proposals Bird has made central to her campaign. Of particular note are her detailed pragmatic proposals for restraining ICE. In the same study, Rutinel was ranked 45th out of 50. Bird sponsored 104 bills in 2025, passing bills supporting affordable housing, workers’ rights, and education, among others. Bird was one of 17 subjects of an ethics complaint related to a dark-money-funded 2024 retreat connected to the Opportunity Caucus. The complaint was ultimately dismissed, however, and Bird was neither part of the caucus at the time nor did she attend the event.

Her record makes Bird the choice.

State House District 19

Jillaire McMillan v. Anil Pesaramelli v. Colton Jonjak Plahn

The Pick: Anil Pesaramelli

Anil Pesaramelli

Anil Pesaramelli has taken the traditional approach in this election; he knocked on 4,000 doors, gathering local support and listening to the community about local issues. He is an immigrant and former engineer. He has stood firm during several closely divided 4–3 Erie Town Council votes, challenging the council majority on issues including mineral rights negotiations tied to Draco, housing affordability, and support for local nonprofits and community organizations.

Colton Jonjak Plahn

Colton Jonjak Plahn was a late addition to the ballot in this district. At 25, he would be the youngest state legislator in Colorado. While his idealism and separation from political money and machinery make him an exciting voice, his limited experience weighs heavily in our consideration.

Jillaire McMillan

Jillaire McMillan, a small business owner and community leader, is no slouch either: she ran in 2024 when the incumbent dropped out with only 89 days left and only lost by 110 votes. Her experiences in legislation are limited, and while she states civic engagement, it is Pesaramelli who is hitting the streets.

Pesaramelli’s support for universal healthcare and stronger unions align him more with what the electorate in Colorado desires. McMillan has establishment endorsements without a stronghold of local support.

Pesaramelli is the pick. 

State House District 31

Gabriel Cervantes v. Jacque Phillips

The Pick: Gabriel Cervantes

Gabriel Cervantes

Gabriel Cervantes, a nonprofit cofounder, places a large emphasis on affordable housing, specifically blocking private equity and corporate entities from buying single-family homes. His campaign also promises to explore avenues to prosecute ICE agents overstepping their authority. He supports grants and tax credits for Colorado’s growing senior population, an under-discussed issue in this election. Cervantes also has an endorsement from Julie Gonzales.

Jacque Phillips

Incumbent Jacque Phillips’ platform offers no plan on immigration, vague promises on climate change, and broad references to “high-quality jobs and vocational training.” While her voting record is okay, she is an establishment, smaller-scope candidate whose vision pales beside Cervantes’ ambition.

Our choice is Gabriel Cervantes.

State House District 33

Heidi Henkel v. Kenny Nguyen

The Pick: Heidi Henkel

Heidi Henkel

Henkel has been working for Broomfield since 2007, where she was a teacher and a math tutor. She worked on the Broomfield Resettlement Task Force, helping refugees from Ukraine and Afghanistan. Henkel supported Senate Bill 181, legislation born from years of advocacy that returned greater local control over oil and gas development near homes and schools. Henkel also garnered over 60% of the delegate share at assembly.

Incumbent Kenny Nguyen has worked for nonprofits as well as the lieutenant governor in recent years. However, Nguyen brings less experience and a less developed policy platform than Henkel in this district. His platform on climate and workers’ rights lacks specificity, and while his platform mentions immigration, it makes no reference to ICE.

With her focus on affordability, Democrats should be excited to see what Henkel can do in this term.

The post 2026 Colorado Primary Election Endorsements appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Press releases are provided to Yellow Scene Magazine. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

PRESS RELEASE

January 27, 2026

Contact: Liza Nielsen, lizanielsen1@gmail.com, 408-612-6174

Community showed support for Starbucks Workers United and broader labor movement

DENVER – Today, community members across dozens of unions, nonprofits, and ally organizations gathered for Colorado’s first-ever Unite the Unions event to uplift Starbucks Workers United and the state’s broader labor movement, as well as confront the rise of violent authoritarianism. Organized by the Starbucks Workers United strike team at the Garden of the Gods Starbucks in Colorado Springs, today’s rally marked the 10th week of the baristas’ strike and delivered one clear message: Coloradans stand with workers and support the fight for justice, safety, and democracy.

“Workers across Colorado are standing up, organizing, and demanding better,” Kylie Anderson, SBWU Worker-Organizer, said. “We want elected officials and the public to know that the working class must be the top priority in upcoming elections. Workers are uniting to pass the Worker Protection Act and move our state forward together.”

More than 150 Starbucks stores nationwide went on indefinite strike on Red Cup Day, including 17 stores across Colorado. The strike comes amid a broader surge in worker organizing statewide and nationally, from coffee shops and grocery stores to higher education, healthcare, and public service. Workers across Colorado are increasingly taking collective action to demand fair wages, safe workplaces, and real accountability from employers.

Workers outside Starbucks Lafayatte
Photo from Sprout Foster

“Right now, corporate executives and union-busters get to control our lives, our schedules, our paychecks, and whether we can speak up without being punished. If we want Colorado to be a union state, elected officials can’t just cheer from the sidelines; we have to update statutes, pass the PRO Act, enforce real penalties for retaliation, and stop rewarding lawbreaking companies with public dollars,” said Senadora Julie Gonzales, a candidate for the U.S. Senate. “I’ve seen what happens when people get organized: you can break a rigged system. I’ll always fight for workers’ freedom to unionize, to stand together, and to demand more than crumbs, without their jobs being used as a weapon against them.”

Organizers said their rally echoes the Minnesota worker protests and strikes against violent federal ICE operations. These collective actions reflect a moment of growing worker solidarity confronting threats to civil and labor rights.

“This movement is growing every day,” Raven Caruth, SBWU Worker-Organizer, said. “When workers come together, we are unstoppable. One brick at a time, we will build a firm foundation for unions to flourish in the land of the free once more because our voice matters.”

Colorado Starbucks Workers United is a part of Starbucks Workers United, a national labor movement of Starbucks workers organizing for fair wages, safe working conditions, dignity on the job, and standing in solidarity with workers nationwide to oppose violence and authoritarianism in all its forms. Learn more at https://linktr.ee/Sbwu_CO.

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Press releases are provided to Yellow Scene Magazine. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

DENVER, CO — One Colorado, the state’s leading advocacy organization for LGBTQIA+ Coloradans, released the following statement regarding the recent killing of Renee Nicole Good, a U.S. citizen and former Colorado resident, by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The news of Renee Nicole Good’s death is a horrific addition to a year already defined by violence and systemic overreach. Renee was a mother, an artist, a friend, and a cherished member of our Colorado community. We are deeply saddened and outraged by this senseless act of violence.

The Reality of Systemic Violence

The fear and anger vibrating through our community right now are justified. While Renee’s death has captured headlines, we must acknowledge that this tragedy is a reality that Black, BIPOC, immigrant, and transgender communities have faced for decades.

Last year alone, 32 deaths were recorded in ICE custody or involving ICE actions. However, the stories of people of color are frequently overlooked or ignored by mainstream media. Those detained by ICE are often made invisible to the public, allowing systemic corruption and violence to persist unnoticed.

What we allow to happen to one can and will happen to all. We must stand up to those in power who allow this violence to plague our communities. ICE and current federal policies are not making us safer; they are systematically causing harm to minority communities.

The Intersection of Our Struggles

When we advocate for Freedom for All, we are fighting for a future where every Coloradan, regardless of their zip code, documentation status, or identity, is free to live without the shadow of state-sanctioned violence. Central to this mission is the struggle for bodily autonomy, a fight that inextricably unites trans, immigrant, and racial justice movements.

The systems that seek to police trans bodies are the same systems that surveil and detain immigrants and criminalize Black and Brown communities. This violation of bodily autonomy is a shared experience of systemic violence, but it is not felt equally. This reality is even more acute for QTBIPOC and trans and queer immigrants, who live at the intersection of multiple forms of state-sanctioned harm.

Our Vision for Colorado

True justice requires the presence of safety and dignity. We must look beyond the end of state-sanctioned violence and toward a future where our communities are empowered to thrive in safety. We are committed to a Colorado where:

Dissent is protected, not penalized.

Healthcare is a universal right, free from government overreach or discriminatory barriers.

Bodily autonomy is absolute, ensuring that every person has the power to make decisions about their own life and body.

By acknowledging the shared roots of our struggles, we strengthen our collective power to build a Colorado where everyone is truly free to be themselves.

Join the Fight

At One Colorado we know that no single organization can carry this movement alone.

We invite our community to join us in turning our collective grief into lasting change by lifting up and supporting the diverse organizations doing vital work across Colorado.

From grassroots organizers to direct service providers, our partners are on the front lines every day. By supporting this entire ecosystem of advocacy, we ensure that our community’s needs are met from every angle.

Who to Support:

Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, statewide membership-based coalition of immigrant, labor, interfaith, youth and ally organizations founded in 2002 to build a unified statewide voice to improve the lives of immigrants and refugees in Colorado and the United States. CIRC achieves this mission through non-partisan civic engagement, public education and advocacy to win fair, humane and workable public policies.

Colorado Trans Immigrant Fund, welcomes and offers aid to folks inside and released from detention as they take their next steps!

Casa de Paz, based in Aurora, Colorado, welcomes recently released newcomers, Asylum seekers, and immigrants; we facilitate their next steps towards reunifications with loved ones in a dignifying way.

The Shut Down GEO Aurora Coalition is a community-led campaign of individuals and organizations aiming to shut down the Aurora GEO/ICE facility. The contract for this facility expires in October 2026, and the coalition demands the facility’s permanent closure, the release of those detained inside, and for the space to be reutilized in a manner that serves the broader Aurora and East Denver communities. This campaign is part of a growing national movement of re-imagining a future without immigrant detention, building community, shifting power, and ending the practice of profiting from pain.

Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights, a Latina-led, community-rooted reproductive justice organization that enables Latine individuals to lead safe, healthy, and self-determined lives, including the right to access abortion care.

Together, we can create the future that all Coloradans deserve.

In solidarity,

One Colorado

303 E 17th Ave

Suite 400

Denver, CO 80203

United States

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Editor’s Note: Press Releases are provided to Yellow Scene. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

DENVER — In response to the House of Representatives’ vote to pass President Trump’s Big Ugly Bill, Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib issued the following statement:

“Today, Colorado House Republicans joined their colleagues in voting to screw over every working class American family by passing Trump’s Big Ugly Bill. Gabe Evans, Lauren Boebert, Jeff Hurd and Jeff Crank showed all of Colorado who they really are: grifters who would rather bail out billionaires than help working people who are struggling to get by because of their economic policies.

Gabe Evans and Jeff Hurd had the chance to be on the right side of this disaster and stand up to their king and preserve these crucial social programs we all rely on. Instead, they bent the knee after flirting with standing up for Coloradans.

This billionaire-first budget bill is a robbery in broad daylight, and they’re shameless about it — every Republican, Democrat, and unaffiliated voter will be hurt by this legislation so that billionaires can enjoy yet another handout from the government.

After President Trump signs this bill, many Coloradans will soon see their health insurance and food assistance vanish. In their communities, rural hospitals will close and economic opportunity will continue to shrink.

We are thankful for all the members of our Democratic Congressional delegation who did everything they could to stop this trainwreck. Our fight to keep our country on the right track continues. We cannot and will not give up.”

This is what Gabe Evans, Lauren Boebert, Jeff Hurd and Jeff Crank voted for…

• Ripping health care away from more than 225,000 Coloradans and putting the coverage of more than 1 million Coloradans in total at risk

• Stripping food assistance from 243,000 Coloradans

• Take at least $1,200 out of the pockets of older Coloradans

• Putting six rural Colorado hospitals at risk of closure

• $1.3 billion more in increased energy bills in one decade, an average increase of $500

• 15,500 Colorado jobs lost by 2030, 10,100 more by 2035

• $15 billion wiped from Colorado GDP in one decade

• A $190 million battery plant, which would have been built in Gabe Evans’ district, cancelled its construction, taking the 332 jobs it would have given Brighton with it

The post Colorado Democratic Party’s Statement on the Vote to Pass President Trump’s Big Ugly Bill appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Editor’s Note: Press Releases are provided to Yellow Scene. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

DENVER — In response to the United States Senate’s passage of President Trump’s Big Ugly Bill, referring it back to the House of Representatives, Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib issued the following statement:

“Today, Senate Republicans voted to screw over Coloradans and every working class American family. Their billionaire-first budget enriches the wealthiest in our state and country and forces working class Coloradans and families to pay for it by robbing them of their health insurance, putting rural hospitals at risk, taking food off the table and killing good-paying jobs.

We are thankful for the leadership of Colorado Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper in voting against the Colorado GOP and President Trump’s disastrous, wildly unpopular Big Ugly Bill, forcing Vice President JD Vance to break a gridlocked tie after over 24 hours of fight, debate, and amendments from Senate Democrats.

While we wish that Lauren Boebert, Gabe Evans, Jeff Crank, and Jeff Hurd could summon even an ounce of the courage that the three Senate Republicans who voted no on this legislation did, our expectations are very low: they take orders from Trump – not their constituents; that’s why you won’t find them at an in-person town hall or, in Gabe and Lauren’s case, in their districts at all.”

Trump’s Big Ugly Bill puts Coloradans’ health care, food assistance and jobs on the chopping block…

• Ripping health care away from more than 225,000 Coloradans and putting the coverage of more than 1 million Coloradans in total at risk

• Stripping food assistance from 243,000 Coloradans

• Take at least $1,200 out of the pockets of older Coloradans

• Putting six rural Colorado hospitals at risk of closure

• $1.3 billion more in increased energy bills in one decade, an average increase of $500

• 15,500 Colorado jobs lost by 2030, 10,100 more by 2035

• $15 billion wiped from Colorado GDP in one decade

• A $190 million battery plant, which would have been built in Gabe Evans’ district, cancelled its construction, taking the 332 jobs it would have given Brighton with it

Luckily, we have fighters in Colorado’s Democratic Congressional Delegation in Representatives Jason Crow, Diana DeGette, Joe Neguse and Brittany Pettersen. This bill is not passing without a fight in DC or in Colorado.”

The post Colorado Democratic Party Thanks Senators Bennet, and Hickenlooper for Voting to Protect Colorado in Big Ugly Bill Vote appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

photo credit: George Hudetz, Erie CO, No Kings Day

Erie

Erie used to have 500 houses, 1,200 people, and dirt roads—not in 1890 but as recently as 1990. However, like so many Colorado Front Range towns, it’s seen rapid, relentless growth since then. Today, it’s home to 40,000 people and projected to hit 70,000. (Let’s just hope they don’t choose sprawl in the years ahead.)

Back in 2000, Erie was the fastest-growing municipality in the state, posting a wild 300% growth rate. In just ten years, it jumped from a forgotten mining town to 8,500 people and 4,000 homes. That was nothing compared to where it stands now or where it’s headed. Once again, it has ranked as the fastest-growing community in the Front Range and number 15 in the country.

It also used to be a much redder town. After all, it was a quiet, rural place, mostly off the radar. And red 35 years ago wasn’t synonymous with the cult-of-personality nationalism and strongman-style populism we see today. Aside from Bush, being Republican back then tended to mean a focus on land, taxes, law and order, and a hands-off approach to your neighbor’s business. But with all the new homes and new neighbors, Erie now votes about 65% blue, including both the Boulder and Weld County sides. And no, realtors aren’t asking how people are registered to vote when they’re selling homes. The same demographic shifts are happening in Longmont, too.

photo credit: George Hudetz

photo credit: George Hudetz

Erie residents don’t need to drive to Denver anymore to have its voice heard. Whether it’s the result of shifting demographics or the shock and disgust at witnessing this administration’s open corruption, authoritarianism, and outright contempt for the Constitution, Erie came to be counted.

An estimated 1,200 people turned out for No Kings Day at County Line Road and Erie Parkway. All four corners were packed. The crowd stretched out for nearly a mile, with people lining the streets, waving signs, and cheering as a steady stream of mostly supportive honking cars passed by.

A few drivers made their dissent clear, and two men appeared briefly with a Trump sign, but from what we observed, everyone remained respectful and let them be. Erie Police were a friendly but frequent presence. 

Amid the steady hum of car horns and community energy, local leaders took the mic to address the crowd. District Attorney Michael Dougherty came out and spoke, challenging the administration to uphold the rule of law. Erie Councilperson Emily Baer emphasized compassion and community. She called on the crowd to act in love—for one another, and for the world—reminding us that only love can conquer hate.

Local resident and No Kings Day organizer Bob Braudes put it simply:

“It’s time to put Erie on the political map. We’re 40,000 people now.”

photo credit: Shavonne Blades

Photo credit: Jordan Neumeyer

Photo Credit: Kenneth Wajda

Photo credit: Rowan Ellis

At 12:45 p.m. on a warm Saturday afternoon, hundreds had already gathered along Longmont’s 6th Street. Within the hour, that crowd swelled to an estimated 1,500 to 2,000 people. They stood shoulder-to-shoulder on sidewalks, median strips, and restaurant patios—holding signs, chanting, and waving to honking cars passing by. The mood was both electric and resolute which displayed a sense of community strength and political defiance. 

This protest, part of the national “No Kings Day” movement organized by 50501, Indivisible and co-sponsored locally by the Colorado Forward Party. The Protest was timed in response to reports of a planned military-style parade coinciding with former President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday. Organizers framed the demonstration as a rebuke of authoritarianism and an act of solidarity with communities impacted by ICE raids and federal crackdowns.

Photo credit: Rowan Ellis

Unlike the large-scale marches in metropolitan areas, the Longmont protest was stationary—concentrated at 6th & Main for just about an hour. But the energy was anything but still. Protesters waved American flags with altered slogans, wore “No Kings” t-shirts handed out by volunteers, and kept chants alive through megaphones: “This is what democracy looks like” echoed across the street in rhythmic unison. 

Despite the crowd size, the police presence was minimal. Only one or two officers were visible throughout the event, and they remained mostly on the periphery.  

One striking observation was the age composition of the crowd. An estimated 60–65% of attendees were older adults—many of them seniors. The rest of the crowd represented a wide range of identities: young activists, families with children, BIPOC individuals, and people who had traveled from nearby Boulder and Denver. 

The atmosphere held contradictions. There was hope in the collective unity, yet an undercurrent of frustration—perhaps even despair—over the necessity of still having to protest such basic democratic ideals. As one attendee put it, 

“There’s something deeply human about standing side by side with people who feel what you feel. It’s really comforting and heartbreaking.” 

Many participants were reluctant to go on record—understandably cautious about press exposure. Still, a few candid conversations offered deep insight into the stakes at play. 

Photo Credit: Kenneth Wajda

Photo credit: Rowan Ellis

Two older women, both white and longtime residents of Longmont, spoke passionately about why they felt this was not just a coastal or federal issue: 

“He’s trying to be a dictator. Even if it doesn’t feel like it’s hitting our daily lives yet—it will. He’s got the Supreme Court in his pocket. We have to speak up because this is our government, and our silence makes it someone else’s problem. We cannot allow that.” 

Another group—two middle-aged men and two women from Denver—shared that they intentionally avoided the Denver protest out of safety concerns following increased tensions in major cities. Longmont, they said, felt safer but no less meaningful. 

“My family’s scared to go to work. That’s not what this country should be. I don’t want to wake up one day and never see them again because someone decided their existence was illegal. What Trump’s doing goes beyond politics—it’s anti-human.” 

These sentiments were echoed in various forms throughout the crowd: fears of ICE enforcement, erosion of democratic values, and the broader question of what kind of country the United States is becoming. 

Because in the end the fight for democracy doesn’t always start in Washington. Sometimes, it begins on a street corner, in the heart of a town, with people who believe their voices can turn the tide.

Photo credit: Rowan Ellis

Photo credit: Rowan Ellis

Photo Credit: Kenneth Wajda

Photo Credit: Kenneth Wajda

Photo credit Steven Nasada, Social Media, Boulder CO, No Kings Day

On June 14th, over 5 million people mobilized in lieu of Trump’s display of military power. The “No Kings Day” protest this last Saturday, organized by the ACLU, 50501, American Oppositions and Indivisible, brought over 5,000 Boulder residents to the streets. 

The day was filled with camaraderie as local officials and activists expressed their frustrations with the current administration. Speakers included Mayor Aaron Brockett, District Attorney Michael Dougherty, Secretary of State Jena Griswold and Councilmember Nicole Speer.

Photo credit Steven Nasada, Social Media

While protestors suffered over 90-degree weather; there were no counterprotestors, and police presence did not lead to any violence. Many residents carried their signs to the local farmer’s market, while others sat outside local brunch spots with their sign in one hand and a mimosa in the other. The demographics of the demonstrators was overwhelmingly White and over 50. 

However, for the people working the brunch tables and sweeping the street, solidarity was found. There are two types of people in Boulder; those who eat the food, and those who serve the food. While many people subordinated under Trump’s administration cannot demonstrate safely; such as undocumented immigrants, there are others who are willing to stand in their stead. That’s what the community saw this past Saturday in Boulder, a massive group of people willing to stand up to authoritarianism despite how they are affected. 

Not to say that White people over 50 are not affected by Trump’s policies. Cuts to medicaid, lack of veteran resources, and attacks on reproductive justice hurt this group especially. Critics will explain how protests should ‘look;’ hip-looking punks spraying anarchy signs on a cop car, a Ford on fire, the fireworks of tear gas and AR-15s are all necessary to simulate a ‘revolution.’ 

Photo credit Steven Nasada, Social Media

While protestors were mobilizing in every major city except D.C., Trump was celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Army with a display of military strength. Footage shows an Army failing to march in a set rhythm and outdated tanks squeaking past a lackluster crowd. This display projected disorganization and insecurity. 

There is revolution in joy and non-violent protests. Revolution starts with talking with neighbors and organizing. Last Saturday showed that those who value democracy are not alone, and that they are the majority. Authoritarianism cowers in the face of progressive happiness and the displacement of fear. 

So while the only casualties in Boulder may be empty sunscreen and champagne bottles, there was a message and it was heard. No Kings. 

Photo credit Linda O’Neill, Social Media

Photo credit Linda O’Neill, Social Media

Photo credit: Steven Nasada, Social Media

Photo credit: Linda O’Neill, Social Media

Photo credit Linda O’Neill, Social Media

Photo credit: Vince Chandler, Denver CPO, No Kings Day

Up to 20,000 protesters converged on downtown Denver Saturday afternoon for the “No Kings” protest—an anti-authoritarian demonstration that transformed Lincoln Veterans Memorial Park into an open-air hub of resistance. Demonstrators started at the state capitol, and marched throughout the city at one point reaching a mile long. 

Photo credit: Vince Chandler

The event was one of many held nationwide on June 14 in response to President Trump’s immigration crackdown as well as the simultaneous military parade in Washington, D.C. But in Denver, what started as a peaceful rally ended with 36 arrests and reports of police once again using smoke and pepper balls to clear the streets.

Organized by local activist coalition Colorado 50501, a portion of the protest was framed as an “activist fair” meant to bring together a broad spectrum of resistance movements—from anti-ICE efforts and Indigenous sovereignty to queer and trans rights. Music performances, teach-ins, and tabling sessions filled the afternoon, with organizers urging attendees to think beyond a single-day march and build out sustained resistance networks.

“People don’t know where to put their energy after the protest,” said Steffan Becker, one of the event’s lead organizers. “The point of this festival is to show people they can plug in, show up.”

Colorado 50501 joined the Party for Socialism and Liberation at 4 pm for a peaceful march through downtown. Alternatively, Block-by-Block had ambitious plans to line protesters on the sidewalks of Broadway beginning at the capitol in Denver and ending in Highlands Ranch. 

After these events had ended, a contingent of demonstrators remained downtown into the evening, shifting focus to the local ICE field office on 30th and Peoria. It was during this second wave of protest that the tone changed, a recurring theme in Denver. 

According to Denver police, officers arrested 36 individuals after issuing several dispersal orders. Those arrested faced charges ranging from failure to obey lawful orders to obstruction of roadways. Officers used smoke canisters and pepper balls but did not deploy tear gas.

Photo credit: Vince Chandler

Photo credit: Vince Chandler

In a statement, DPD said it had preemptively closed portions of Lincoln Street and used rolling closures throughout the day. Leading up to the event, the department had also warned residents to report “suspicious or unlawful behavior,” a move that drew criticism from civil liberties groups who saw it as an attempt to pre-frame the protest as criminal.

While DPD had made promises during the 2020 BLM protests not to harm peaceful protesters, this seems to go by the wayside once the sun goes down and organizers head home. Leaving people with a clear message that their First Amendment right to peaceful assembly will only be protected if it’s done when and how local law enforcement approves of. 

Despite the evening escalation, Denver protesters remained focused on their message: rejecting authoritarianism and standing in solidarity with the communities most impacted by Trump-era policies. 

Organizers estimate that over 8,000 people attended throughout the day, making it one of the largest public demonstrations in Denver since the Women’s March in 2017. The “No Kings” campaign spanned over 2,000 cities nationwide and drew what organizers claim to be 4–6 million participants, though those numbers have not yet been independently verified.

Photo credit: Vince Chandler

Photo credit: Vince Chandler

Photo credit: Vince Chandler

Photo credit: Vince Chandler

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The post No Kings Day: Thousands Rally in Denver, Boulder, Longmont, and Erie appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Press releases are provided to Yellow Scene Magazine. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

Rep. Evans’ act of betrayal will define the remainder of his political career

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, May 22, 2025
CONTACT: Sara Loflin, Executive Director at 303-349-1617

DENVER: Following the 215-214 vote by House Republicans to pass their so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” of devastating cuts to the nation’s social safety nets to pay for even more tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans, ProgressNow Colorado, the state’s largest multi-issue progressive advocacy organization, condemned Rep. Gabe Evans’ deciding vote to pass the bill, and vowed to ensure every voter in Evans’ district understands the needless pain Evans just inflicted on his own constituents.

“Last night’s vote was the first real test of Gabe Evans’ integrity, and he blew it,” said ProgressNow Colorado executive director Sara Loflin. “For months, residents of Evans’ district begged him to step back from the brink and reject his colleagues’ plans to throw millions of Americans off the Medicaid rolls to fund tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Because of Gabe Evans’ vote, unless the Senate intervenes to stop this madness, thousands of residents of the Eighth Congressional District will lose their health coverage. Of those thousands, some will not fit Evans’ cheap stereotypes, and those people will suffer so the wealthiest Americans can have more tax cuts. Some of them will die.”

“Gabe Evans’ decisive vote to slash essential needs like health care and food assistance in order to give even more tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans will define what’s left of Evans’ career in public office,” said Loflin. “Gabe Evans chose Trump over Thornton, Musk over Milliken, and greed over Greeley. Evans has betrayed the trust of the voters who narrowly elected him to Congress, many of whom likely had no idea they were voting to cut funding to their own communities. There is no going back now. Before last night, the task was persuasion. From today until Election Day 2026, the job is to hold Gabe Evans accountable for what he did last night.”

The post Gabe Evans Casts Deciding Vote To Slash Medicaid Funding appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

The post Healthcare Advocates Urge CO Congresspeople to Oppose Medicaid Cuts appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Editor’s Note: Press Releases are provided to Yellow Scene. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

Dear Neighbor,

As you may know, Medicaid and critical federal programs that serve countless Coloradans are currently on the chopping block in Congressional Republicans’ proposed federal budget. Behind closed doors, these lawmakers are plotting to cut vital lifelines for families across our state—potentially slashing affordable and accessible healthcare to the tune of $880 billion. For Coloradans on the Western Slope, rural Colorado, and across the Front Range, these cuts would be devastating and put many at risk of not receiving the healthcare they need, including treatments and medication.

On our Medicaid Day of Action earlier this week, Governor Jared Polis and I toured a local clinic in Lafayette to underscore the importance of community health centers and vowed to continue pushing back on behalf of the 89,445 individuals in Colorado’s 2nd District who are at risk of losing their health care coverage.

Also this week, I was grateful to join Boulder County’s elected leaders for a conversation on the road ahead. As Coloradans contend with the harmful impacts of the Trump Administration’s unlawful directives, it is essential we have community-focused discussions on the priorities at risk.

I also convened leaders from across the Front Range, including experts from Colorado’s federal research labs, for a roundtable at CU Boulder to discuss how we can continue to grow our innovation ecosystem. With the administration’s ongoing attempts to freeze federal funding, critical support for our research labs remains in jeopardy. I will continue fighting to protect the resources needed for groundbreaking research across Colorado.

Last week, as the federal government funding deadline was near, House Republican leadership decided to use valuable time to focus on what? Dishwashers, pool heaters, and ice makers. No, seriously.

In case you missed it, watch my remarks on the House Floor calling out my colleagues for their misguided priorities HERE.

Happening Tomorrow! In 2025, we’ve already hosted four town halls — in Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont, and Nederland. And we’re just getting started! Tomorrow, I’ll host town halls in Boulder County and the Western Slope. Learn more HERE.

Submissions are open for the 2025 Congressional Art Competition! High school-aged students across Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District are encouraged to apply, learn more HERE.

Important Deadlines! As folks continue rebuilding efforts in the aftermath of the Marshall Fire, please take a moment to review these upcoming deadlines for financial incentives and recovery program closures! See program information and deadlines HERE.

If you or someone you know has been affected by recent orders issued by the White House, please refer to the list of resources my team has compiled to assist you. View our webpage HERE.

And, as always, should you need any assistance from our office, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Stay safe, stay healthy, and stay hopeful!

The post Medicaid Day of Action appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

[ Local ]

• Denver sees a surge in office-to-apartment conversions as the city turns more and more vacant office spaces into housing. Denver now ranks 15th in the nation in terms of number of office-to-apartment conversions.
• Employees at King Soopers stores in seven Colorado counties go on strike, accusing the stores of union busting activities and a proposal to take away retiree health benefit funds in exchange for increased wages. King Soopers, in term, sues the union for working with out-of-state organizations.
• Louisville City Council votes unanimously to hire Diana Langley as the new city manager. Langley is currently city manager of Yuba City, California, a city over three times the size of Louisville.
• A Tesla dealership in Loveland has been vandalized with graffiti and broken glass multiple times in the past few weeks in a series of incidents believed to be a response to Elon Musk’s actions as head of the Department of Government Efficiency

[ National ]

• Donald J. Trump is sworn in for his second term as President of the United States and immediately starts signing a series of executive orders targeting immigrant rights, transgender rights, and government spending, triggering a series of court challenges against his orders. Many of his EOs are currently blocked by courts.
• Billionaire Elon Musk is appointed head of the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency and cuts government spending in many major departments, many of which he has no legal authority to issue directives to, leading to questions about whether the rule of law even applies under the Trump administration.
• All 50 states hold massive protests against Trump’s policies on immigration, transgender rights, and more.
• The Philadelphia Eagles stop the Kansas City Chiefs from pulling off a historic three consecutive Super Bowl wins, as Philadelphia pulls off the shocking upset with a 40-22 win over Kansas City.

[ International ]

• The Israel/Hamas ceasefire remains precarious as Hamas delays the release of captives saying that Israel is not respecting the ceasefire.
• Trump proposes bizarre plan to clear Palestinians out of Gaza and have the United States take over their land. Rights groups have referred to his plan as “ethnic cleansing.”.
• With a new outbreak of Ebola confirmed in Uganda, the country tests out a new trial vaccine, the first for the Sudan strain of the virus.
• Thousands of protesters in Bangladesh demolish and set fire to the former home of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in response to her speech on social media calling for her supporters to resist the interim government.

Quotes

“Kroger negotiators have illegally insisted on robbing retiree health care benefits to fund wage increases for workers today. Sadly, this Company’s targeting of fixed-income retirees and other vulnerable populations only compounds its history of targeting consumers with predatory pricing.” 
– UFCW Local 7 President Kim Cordova on the reasons for the King Soopers strike

“Louisville is known for its rich history, charm, and strong civic engagement, and I look forward to working alongside the City Council and staff to continue Louisville’s tradition of being a great place to live.”

– Diana Langley accepting her new role as Louisville city manager

“”I’ve been on the bench for four decades, I can’t remember another case where the question presented is as clear as this one is. There are other times in world history where we look back and people of goodwill can say, ‘Where were the judges? Where were the lawyers?’”

– U.S. District Judge John Coughenour in striking down Trump’s executive order trying to revoke birthright citizenship

“Marsha P. Johnson would have already started throwing bricks!”

– A sign held by a protester at the February 5th protest at the State House

By the Numbers

77

The number of King Soopers locations across seven different Colorado counties that are involved in the strike

#50501

The hashtag representing the February 5th protests, indicating 50 protests in 50 state capitols on one day

53

The number of days it took for Adolph Hitler to dismantle Germany’s democracy after taking office

March 14, 2025

The day Donald Trump hits 53 days in office

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The post Month In Review | February 2025 appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

In a bold display of solidarity, approximately 10,000 King Soopers workers across Colorado have launched a strike. They are citing unfair labor practices and the company’s refusal to address critical issues in their “Last, Best, and Final Offer.”

The strike, organized by the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union Local 7 (UFCW Local 7), affects 77 stores throughout Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson counties, and King Soopers stores in Boulder and Louisville.

Union leaders argue that King Soopers, a subsidiary of Kroger, has consistently engaged in tactics designed to undermine worker rights and suppress union activities. According to UFCW Local 7, the company has engaged in illegal surveillance and interrogation of union members, withheld critical information necessary for contract negotiations, and even targeted retiree health benefits to fund wage increases for current employees.

“This strike is about holding one of the largest corporations in America accountable when they break the law and cause harm to workers and our customers,” noted Kim Cordova, president of Local 7, which has offices in Colorado Springs, Cheyenne, Wheat Ridge, Grand Junction, Greeley and Pueblo, Colo. “We are holding this strike for a two-week period to allow everyone to understand our concerns and give the employer time to right their wrong.”

 

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The union also alleges that King Soopers has retaliated against workers for wearing union attire and participating in union activities, actions that are protected under federal labor laws. Such behavior, according to UFCW Local 7, is part of a broader strategy to intimidate and weaken the union’s bargaining power.

In response to the strike and the union’s allegations, King Soopers filed a federal lawsuit against UFCW Local 7. The company claims that the union is engaging in unlawful tactics by trying to force King Soopers into bargaining with other labor unions that do not represent its employees. The lawsuit accuses the union of threatening illegal strikes and coordinating bargaining efforts with unions outside Colorado, such as the Teamsters and other UFCW locals.

“This litigation is nothing more than an attempt to distract from King Soopers’ efforts to silence its workforce and prevent workers from reaching an equitable contract that addresses major issues like staffing, safety, and health care,” the union said. “Kroger will go to any length to hide its corporate greed in price gouging and shareholder buybacks.”

King Soopers maintains that its “Last, Best, and Final Offer” includes significant wage increases and benefits. The company expressed disappointment over the union’s decision to strike, arguing that the offer was designed to benefit associates while keeping groceries affordable for customers. However, workers and union leaders argue that the proposed wage increases come at the cost of critical protections, such as seniority-based scheduling and retiree health benefits.

The strike has garnered widespread support from the community, with customers and local organizations standing in solidarity with the workers. Many shoppers have chosen to boycott King Soopers stores during the strike, opting to support other local businesses or shop at union-friendly stores.

The strike also raises broader questions about labor practices within the grocery industry and the role of unions in protecting worker rights. As one of the largest grocery chains in the country, Kroger’s handling of the situation could set a precedent for labor relations across the industry.

As the strike continues, both sides remain entrenched in their positions. UFCW Local 7 has vowed to continue the strike until King Soopers addresses their demands and negotiates in good faith. Meanwhile, the company’s legal actions and public statements suggest a prolonged battle ahead.

For the workers on the picket lines, the fight is about more than just wages—it’s about dignity, respect, and the right to a fair workplace.

The outcome of this strike will not only impact King Soopers employees but could also influence labor movements across the country. As the battle unfolds, one thing is clear: the voices of the workers will not be silenced.

The post Approx. 10,000 Employees Join King Soopers Strike appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

My journey toward child-free thinking did not begin in the parking lot of Gunther Toody’s, but it’s as good a place as any to start this story. I sat in the driver’s seat under the orange neon light of the ’50s diner and had a full-body anxiety attack. I was dating a woman whom I very much loved, but over the past few months, her paranoid delusions had become more frequent. I had sat on the floor beside her for more than one psychotic episode. These episodes left her unable to remember who or where she was and left my ears ringing from the screams. 

Now, she was over a week late. One moment of carelessness and I had ruined my life. I sat in my car, unable to breathe, my body clenched up so tight I thought I would collapse into myself. A week later, she got her period, and I swore I would never put myself in that position again. By year’s end, we had broken up. I would later learn that she had been off her beta-blockers for months and lying about going to therapy.

Like most young Americans, I grew up thinking that having children was just the way things were done, something I would get around to someday. As I grew into adulthood, I realized that having kids was not something I felt in my core that I had to do. I also understood the immense responsibility that went along with being a parent. The trauma of the pregnancy scare afforded me time to reflect on what I wanted for my life.

Eighteen months after the breakup, I made up my mind. I was at a family get-together at a cousin’s remote ranch home. I had a chance to spend time with their eldest child. He was a nice boy, about six years old, with a good personality. I have some minor skills as a photographer, and I showed him how to take photos on my digital camera. He took me into the house and showed me his LEGO collection. We played a board game called Mister Mouth, where you flicked plastic bugs into a spinning frog’s head. Then, we spent a half-hour searching for a Hot Wheels cartoon on Netflix.

My cousin and their spouse are good parents, and they are raising a good son. Still, I could not imagine spending hours of my life, day after day, looking at LEGOs and playing Mister Mouth. I tried to imagine the boy as my own son, a little tyke who would run to his dad’s arms when he came home from work, but the thought inspired no paternal feelings. 

I decided to schedule a vasectomy. 

I have been told more than once that I would be a good father, and I do take it as a compliment. I might be a good commercial diver, too, but you won’t find me welding oil rig pipes in zero-visibility waters off of Galveston Bay. When people say I’d be a good father, they mean I’m conscientious, I’m reasonably good with children, and I have slightly more intelligence than a sack of cement. I am fine with other people’s children — for the most part. The nice thing about other people’s children is that I can visit them, and then put them in my rearview mirror and go home. 

I know for my own sake that I should not be a parent. I hate loud noises and irrationality. I can state with certainty that I could not spend my life caring for a severely disabled child. I would not enjoy spending years raising a child only to have some surly teen say how much they hate me. I enjoy waking up on a Sunday and finding my home as quiet as a library. I enjoy coming home from work to an empty house where I can sit down and do nothing. I have a hard enough time getting myself dressed, fed, and out the door in the morning; the thought of doing that for another human being makes me break into a cold sweat. 

Does this make me selfish? Yes, it does. Am I irresponsible? In many areas, yes. I can only say that I am responsible enough for my lack of responsibility and self-aware enough to get myself snipped. I will gladly counter-pose this against the untold hordes of men and women who think their fertility is the only excuse they need to bring a human life into the world. 

Will I change my mind? This is a possibility I cannot rule out, and it’s why I thought long and hard about this choice. I decided that all things being equal, it would be better to regret not having children than to regret having children: the former might be sad, but the latter is a living hell. I have since learned that thousands of other child-free people have arrived at the same conclusion independently. In some ways, we take the idea of parenthood more seriously than many parents.

A word of warning: I would tell any man that they should not get a vasectomy just so they can have unprotected sex. I chose a vasectomy because I have chosen not to have children, and it is my way of taking ownership of that choice. The difference lies in thinking short-term vs long-term.

I have noticed some odd misconceptions about vasectomies, so time addressing them would be well-spent. First, a vasectomy is not a castration. The doctor is severing two tubes, the vas deferens, that carry sperm from each testicle to the shaft. The incisions required to cut the tubes are very small. Sperm makes up a tiny fraction of semen, so orgasms will look and feel exactly the same. Finally, will a vasectomy make you feel like less of a man? Not in the slightest.

The child-free community on Reddit has been a great help. They have a resources page listing doctors in each US state who will perform sterilizations. I picked a urologist in the Boulder/Denver area and scheduled a consultation.

Two weeks later, I was sitting in a doctor’s office, filled with apprehension. Every child-free person has heard horror stories of doctors who won’t even consider performing the snip unless the patient is married with eight kids under their belt. Would this doctor ask if I might change my mind? Oh, how they love to ask this. Would he tell me I’m too young at 32? (How old do I have to be to know what’s right for my own body?) Would he tell me life is not worth living if I don’t procreate?

The door opened, and the urologist sat down.

“So,” he said, “Ready to call it quits, huh?”

I leaned back in my chair, making a steeple with my fingers, and smiled. 

“Yes,” I said. 

The rest of the appointment was boilerplate: I was told that while reversible in theory, I should consider a vasectomy permanent. I was told that the procedure would take effect in eight or so weeks once the remaining sperm in my tubes had been ‘flushed out,’ so to speak. Finally, the doctor told me he’d done thousands of vasectomies, and none had failed. Would I please not be the first, he asked. I agreed. The doctor left, and a nurse came by to put a date on the calendar.

* * *

I was trying to sell a rare electric guitar. I took it to a shop in Boulder County for refurbishing. The owner of the repair shop was intrigued by the guitar, so we started a conversation about it. A similar guitar was used to play the opening riff from Paul Simon’s “You Can Call Me Al.”

The owner looks up at the clock. “Man, I wish I could keep talking…” A look comes across his face, not sadness, but resignation. “… But I gotta close up and pick up my kids.”

Later that week, another man arrived at my house. I’ve had the guitar up on Craigslist, and he’s looking to buy it. I can tell the man is excited to see it. I showed him how the guitar can be plugged into a synthesizer to play the bassline for “Jam On It” by Newcleus. He digs it. I’ve sold instruments to people who barely know the black keys from the white on a piano, so I’d love to sell this guitar to someone who cares. 

“Do you play anywhere in the area? Any bands?” I ask.

“I used to; I played all over the Front Range,” he says. I see that familiar look fall across his face. “Now I have kids.”

* * *

I had been encouraged to shave ahead of the vasectomy. After looking at my safety razor for five minutes, I decided to leave it to the professionals. A yard sign on the side of the parkway led me to a waxing clinic. I drove there after work and booked an appointment. 

I arrived for my first-ever waxing session at 8 AM on Sunday and was taken into a back room. I was given a wipe to clean myself and then instructed to sit on the table, naked from the waist down, with a towel over my Netherlands. Since I was only having my testicles waxed and not the full “Brazilian,” I was told I would save some money.

The waxing specialist began by rubbing in a cream to limit the pain. When I get a flu shot, I watch the nurse put the needle into my arm. It’s been that way since I was a toddler. For the waxing, I opted not to look, just laid back and kept my eyes closed. I felt the specialist apply a hot wax, followed a few seconds later by a dull sting. It was nothing too bad, and I was beginning to wonder when the prep would end, and the waxing begin. 

The specialist spoke to me. “Just a couple more, and we’ll be done.” 

How about that? 

I dressed, returned to the lobby, and paid. The specialist asked if I’d like to schedule my next appointment. I told her I was good for now. 

The day after my waxing, I arrived at the hospital at 9:20 AM. The place was too crowded for my taste, so I wore a mask inside. I was taken into an examining room and given a “prize bag” containing an ice pack and two containers for sperm samples. I was warned more than once to call ahead before dropping off my samples and to never, ever just leave a sample on the receptionist’s desk if they were out to lunch.

I was told I could leave my shoes on. Clearly, they didn’t expect this to take long. I lay down on the examining table with my pants and underwear around my ankles, ready for the moment I’d been expecting for so long. 

Yes, I took a selfie, unflattering fluorescent lights be damned. 

The urologist and nurse came in and wasted no time. The procedure began with a feeling of rubber bands snapping against my scrotum, which was a one-time-use syringe numbing the incision site. Then came a volley of pinches as the doctor tried to isolate the first tube for cutting.

I have heard the sensation of a vasectomy compared to having your guts yanked out through your ballsack. I can confirm this is true. As with the waxing, I had no desire to look at what was happening, so it was left to my imagination what all the poking, prodding, twisting, and pulling was about. In total, it was no more emotionally uncomfortable than a hernia check during a physical, let alone a prostate exam.

I felt another snap from a numbing injection, and the doctor made small talk. Whenever a doctor makes small talk, they are trying to distract you. Fine by me. 

“So, how many kids do you have, Ambrose?”

Staring at the ceiling, I replied with no hesitation: “I have exactly as many kids as I want.”

The left tube was done first, with some difficulty. The right tube was dispatched with no trouble. 

I had expected to be laid out in pain for the rest of the day, but with two Advil and an afternoon in bed, I felt fine. I’m the kid who watched his nurse give the flu shot, so sure, I have a high pain tolerance. Your mileage may vary. The bruising cleared up in a matter of weeks. 

By sunset, I got dressed and drove out to the mall. 

I’m writing in a booth at Red Robin when the manager comes over to talk to me. I told her I remembered when Red Robin had arcade machines, and we reminisced about the TV sets they used to recess into the floors. 

“Be safe out there,” she said. “Usually, I tell people to go have an adventure, but…”

I put my pen and legal pad away. “I already had my adventure for the day.”

“I hope it was a fun one,” she said.

“Yeah,” I said, “it really was.”

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The post Getting Snipped On The Front Range: A Personal Story of Choosing to be Child-Free appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

“The first time I tried alcohol, I was a teenager, and it immediately made everything feel better,” says Brook Jajczyk, a thirty-five-year-old single mother to twins. “A lot contributed to it becoming addicted; I had experienced trauma and a family history of substance use and mental health, and drinking helped me escape,” Jajczyk says that she went from a studious, college-bound student to a daily drinker, which evolved into using other substances.

“Everything got progressively worse,” Jajczyk recounts, “I did not live up to my potential: because of addiction, I did not go to college, I found myself in situations that resulted in more trauma, I ruined relationships and my career. I just kept digging myself into deeper and deeper holes with no clear solution.” 

Jajczyk found sobriety when pregnant with her twins. She had suffered miscarriages previously and described her successful pregnancy as her “white picket moment.” She was sober for the eight months she was carrying the children and continued to abstain through breast-feeding the pair. However, motherhood comes with countless stressors, and for extraverted Jajczyk, she found herself struggling with isolation. At six months, dealing with severe postpartum depression, she began to drink once again.

Unfortunately, Jajcyzk’s experience is not unique, with one in seven birth-giving individuals experiencing postpartum depression, and fifteen percent of whom find themselves engaging in binge drinking or elicit substance use to deal with the pain.

Over the next several years, Jajczyk would continue to search for sobriety, only to get knocked down by life events, such as a car accident that left her with a traumatic brain injury. Finally, in 2021, she found solace in treatment through the UC Health Center for Dependency, Addiction, and Recovery (CeDar.) It was not just her grit and determination that led to her lasting sobriety but also a balance of medication, therapy, group work, and community service. 

Jajcyzk’s experience: trauma, difficulty finding resources, and a history of mental health and addiction in the family are all unfortunately common in the foundation of those experiencing substance use disorder. Also working against those seeking recovery is the history of drug reform in the United States.

What Causes Substance Use Disorder

There is no cut-and-dry answer to what causes addiction; however, examining a person’s biology, psychology, and social (biopsychosocial) build can provide a better view of the leading theories, which are moral, biological, psychological, and social.

Moral Theory: While this theory is discredited more and more in modern society, it is still frequently used when practitioners are looking at a person with severe or chronic substance use. This theory points to a loss of self-control due to chronic drug use, leading to an increase in relapse or an inability to remain abstinent from substances. While this is still considered a legitimate cause for addiction, many treatment models do not incorporate it into treatment, especially as it places blame or weakness on the individual. This theory is often associated with the “disease” language used around use and treatment and can be seen in the twelve-step model.

Biological Theory: This theory looks at how genetic makeup, or brain chemistry changes, impacts the pleasure and reward receptors. There is some speculation that genes could affect the likelihood of addiction, but there is no hard evidence for this belief. What is understood is that damage to the prefrontal cortex, which can be caused by injury or heavy and chronic substance use, can lead to difficulty with impulse control. The biological perspective is helpful in better understanding Medication-Assisted Treatment.

Psychological Theories: Psychological theories are more of an umbrella perspective than the previous two concepts. This theory looks at how are conditioned to see the world to understand better triggers and cravings that could lead to chronic substance use and addiction.

Social Theories: This perspective examines what occurred to the individual via their history and family that could lead to a dependency on drugs or alcohol. This is the lens used by most researchers and evidence-based specialists today.

Trauma History

Trauma, especially that occurring during childhood, has been shown to correlate, with studies pointing to 59% of young people with post-traumatic stress disorder also experiencing substance use disorder during their life. Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) scores can help examine the stress that children are under due to their family or environment. ACE scores look at neglect, abuse, violence in the house or outside environment, and substance use in the home. Along with being correlated with higher instances of depression, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes, a person with an ACE score over five is four times more likely to struggle with addiction or illicit substance use later on in life.

Gabor Maté is the leading doctor behind the social theory of trauma and how it relates to addiction. In his book, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts, he dives into how trauma and loss, especially in childhood, can lead to addiction and dependency. Maté points to dopamine deficiencies, poor self-esteem, a lack of coping skills, and behavioral patterns that were maladapted in childhood as some of the potential factors that lead to substance use disorder. While some of these factors come from neurological factors, they are also tied to childhood neglect or trauma.

Though a history of trauma might not be the root cause for every person dealing with addiction, using trauma-focused treatment can be extremely beneficial. Many adults, especially those who identify as male, are reportedly less likely to seek psychological support, meaning that substance use disorder recovery could be the first time they are receiving support for the trauma that has occurred in their lives.  Using trauma-informed care or working to help people heal from their trauma, rather than being re-traumatized or discredited, is crucial for people in recovery from substance use disorder. There have been links to the use of trauma-informed care and patients staying in treatment longer and finding success in their recovery.

Mental Illness Co-Occurring with Addiction

According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, 37.9% of adults with Substance Use Disorder were also diagnosed with a mental health condition, most commonly depression, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, and schizophrenia. It is speculated that often substance use can be a way for a person to self-medicate and deal with a mental health condition that might not be diagnosed or understood. However, there are also theories that brain chemistry could lead to vulnerability in addiction. 

Recovery Methodology

Recovery is not easy and often takes more than willpower alone. Substance Use Disorder (SUD) treatment is most successful when rehabilitation programs are utilized. However, several barriers stand between a person struggling with addiction and recovery.

“The behavior and mental health world behind in their ability to make access easy. If you have a medical emergency, you would know exactly where to go; often, the process for mental health can feel cumbersome for someone struggling,” says Ronnie Vasquez, the Acute Care Director at Mental Health Partners of Colorado. Vasquez goes on to explain that the stigmatization of treatment for addiction can be a significant barrier to a person taking the first steps to finding support.

Colorado also faces the issue of not having enough beds available for those struggling with substance use disorder. While Counties such as Boulder and Denver have more resources, they are also faced with the burden of taking on patients from more rural counties where mental health services are not available.

We should look at what the individual needs to recover rather than the societal pressures to penalize those who are using. Jajczyk recounts, “The best people I have ever met in my life are in recovery or are addicts. It is hard to overcome and find stability in recovery, and the consequences are huge. I have almost died. People I know and love have died. If we live, there is jail, destroying relationships and families.” 

Medication Assisted Treatment

Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) is an effective tool to help a person get through detoxification and the subsequent withdrawals. MAT uses FDA-approved drugs to help a person safely withdraw from a substance, as well as prevent future cravings with continued medicated use. “Data is showing a 90% relapse rate for heroin with the use of any MAT,” says Haddad, “it is really hard to do alone.”

For Opiate Use Disorder (OUD), there are three approved medications: Methadone and Buprenorphine, which prevent withdrawal and minimize cravings, and Naltrexone, which blocks the effects of opiates. Both Buprenorphine and Naltrexone can be prescribed and taken once the individual returns home, while Methadone is administered in clinics. Naltrexone is also used in treating Alcohol Use Disorder, often as an aid in helping a person begin to limit use. Acamprosate and Disulfiram are both used for individuals who have already stopped drinking and need to lessen their cravings.

For Jajczyk, the use of MAT completely changed her ability to stay sober. “I went on Nalprexone and a mood stabilizer. It suddenly made sense why people weren’t addicts; I didn’t wake up craving it every morning.” She adds that it was also beneficial for her to have other resources besides the medication, but the medication has kept her and others alive long enough to seek treatment.

While MAT has a high success rate, Dr. Conner warns, “There can be more doctor visits, and some of the medications have unpleasant side effects.” For this reason, it is helpful to maintain contact with a care team while undergoing MAT.

Abstinence (The twelve-step method)

Twelve-step programs take the perspective that substance abuse disorder should be viewed as a disease that can be maintained but never eliminated. Under this methodology of treatment, a person becomes sober at the start of their journey and avoids using substances again. This method is one of the most well-known and continues to support those seeking a solution.

While this method has seen success, criticism of it points to the need to find a higher power, isolating those who may not prescribe to spiritual beliefs, and the need for the person in recovery to stop use by going “cold turkey.” 

The risks of going “Cold Turkey.”

Cutting off substance use immediately, without intervention, is referred to as going “cold turkey.” While it might be an effective way to remove a person from a triggering environment, it comes with risks that can prove uncomfortable at best and deadly at worst. Dr. Haddad warns, “Detoxing from benzos [benzodiazepines] can cause seizures, and alcohol has the risk of Delirium Tremons, which there can be great support around in a detox or treatment center.” A sudden halt in alcohol use causes Delirium Tremons (DTs.) Because alcohol is a depressant, the sudden depletion in the system causes the brain and nervous system to get overstimulated, causing a spike in blood pressure, extreme excitability, and seizures.

While not all substances are deadly during withdrawal, many (such as opiates) have unpleasant symptoms that can make the person in recovery extremely sick. “It is uncomfortable, and it can be extremely tempting to use during that time.” Haddad continues explaining that even when the symptoms of withdrawal are gone, craving can remain, putting the individual at risk of relapse and accidental overdose.

Harm Reduction

The general principle of harm reduction is to minimize the impact of illicit substances, whether it is through abstinence, safer use practices, or management of use. This philosophy accepts that substance use and addiction are a part of the world, and supporting a person who is using is more effective than condemning the behavior.

MAT falls under the umbrella of harm reduction. Still, the practice also expands to preventing overdose and providing safe spaces and tools for individuals who are not ready to undergo it.

Evidence-based practices are the most up-to-date practices that a field of study agrees upon. In regards to SUD treatment, it refers to the medical and mental health treatment required to help a person struggling with addiction stay safe from overdose or lasting repercussions. “There has been a movement away from looking at addiction as if it were a criminal behavior to viewing it as an illness, and more recently, as a chronic illness,” says Dr. Brad Conner, the director of the Masters of Addiction Counseling program at Colorado State University. Conner goes on to explain the importance of not looking at relapse as a fault but rather as a piece of the recovery process, taking away the negative stigmatization of one-directional recovery. He explains that current evidence-based practices have moved away from a twenty-eight-day abstinence model and have started to view treatment as a lifelong process.

Understanding the root causes and treatment methodologies of substance use disorder is crucial in looking at the larger picture of where Colorado and Boulder County stand on their provided resources and criminology perspectives of addiction. In the coming weeks, Yellow Scene will dive more into the legal and government-provided resources available for those struggling with addiction.

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“Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.”

This quote from John F. Kennedy, Jr’s Inaugural Address in 1961 seems rather quaint these days. Kennedy is remembered with a level of admiration I don’t entirely share. He was a charismatic cad and his foreign policy missteps and escalation of the war in Vietnam are serious blemishes.

The quote is credited as inspirational to many young folks at the time, although “doing for the country” meant Peace Corps to some and Marines to others. That legacy is mixed at best.

The sentiment would have more validity if slightly tweaked: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for everyone else.” This notion is completely absent from contemporary political discourse on both sides. From the time of St. Ronnie, mistrust of government has been the theme, whether expressed by Grover Norquist’s suggestion that we shrink it and drown it in the bathtub or the relentless campaign to inaccurately deride government efficiency in the service of privatization.

The corporate, greed-driven privatization con job has been paired with the equally harmful encouragement of charity instead of justice. Charity only partially fills the gaping wounds left by systemic injustice, but hey! – it salves the conscience of the givers despite failing to solve the problems.

How many heartstring-tugging ads must one watch before wondering why feeding children requires the goodwill of “viewers like you?” “Your donation can . . .” is to social justice what “thoughts and prayers” are to unmitigated gun violence. The American tolerance for injustice is sturdy, thanks to these pillars of self-deception. I am a “good person” because I pray, buy Girl Scout cookies and give $5 a month to Save the Children..

The damage of self-interest over selflessness is fueled by the mandatory political litmus test: “Ask yourself if you are better off today than you were four years ago.” Both sides employ the test and then offer up highly selective or distorted statistics to convince you that their party, their candidate, is making your life better. Gas prices, egg prices . . . whatever metric can persuade you.

The ubiquitous rhetoric of self-interest and the twin myths of “evil government” and “charitable divinity” come to the fore this month at tax time. We all hate taxes, don’t we! “It’s MY money,” say the strident voices on my community Facebook page. We are even manipulated into skepticism about school funding. Teachers make too much and don’t even work a full year! Vouchers, charters and school choice have insidiously undermined the commitment to traditional public schools, exacerbating the disinclination to support them.

Our system of taxation is regressive, but since we all hate taxes, there’s little appetite to change it. How many among Trump’s dim minions cheer at his avoidance of taxes and think his multiple bankruptcies are indicative of his great wisdom?

The only objects of nearly fawning public support are first responders. (I qualify the following critique by acknowledging that my own life was arguably saved by such folks, and that these are necessary and, by and large, noble professions.)

Much of the public adoration is almost fetishistic, accompanied by unexamined pride in the military and the militaristic. “Thank you for your service” is available even to the most aggressive violators of norms of decency. The enthusiasm of support is quite often correlated with the extent to which the service offered is to repress and control “the others” on the margins of society. Or “others” beyond our borders. The defense budget is a toxic third rail, and touching it is certain political death.

At tax time it is useful, but insufficient, to remind tax haters of those who fix the roads, maintain the parks, put out the wildfires, manage public health, maintain water systems, provide public transportation and more. Unfortunately, even these obvious and essential things are under regular assault by the a la carte approach. We politically support those things – and only those things – that benefit us directly. “I don’t have kids!” “I don’t use the parks!” “I don’t ride the bus!” “Why should I pay for them?”

This country has abundant resources if we would choose to distribute them with an eye toward social decency. We could feed, shelter, educate, offer healthcare to, and provide a life of dignity to every human within our borders. We could, but we don’t want to.

Our national motto should not be “E Pluribus Unum” (out of many, one). It should be, “You deserve what you get and you get what you deserve.”

The post Ask What You Can Do appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Editor’s Note: Press Releases are provided to Yellow Scene. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

It’s a trend, Friend.
Boulder County joins more than 100
US localities urging action towards
universal, nonprofit, single payer health care.

If Boulder County residents enjoyed a nonprofit single system that paid for everyone’s comprehensive quality affordable health care, small businesses would have an easier time attracting and retaining employees; entrepreneurs would have the freedom to pursue their visions; people could afford housing more easily; and workers of all incomes in all sectors would be healthier.

Citing 14 reasons, Boulder County Commissioners Claire Levy, Ashley Stolzmann, and Marta Loachamin unanimously passed a Proclamation in Support of Improved Medicare for All on Jan. 31.

Boulder County residents shouldn’t have to worry about losing health care when they get married or divorced or care for a loved one, commissioners said. Vision, dental, and mental health should also be included in the universal health care plan.

“The Boulder County Board of County Commissioners hereby urges the Governor of Colorado, our state legislators and our congressional representatives to actively support legislation such as SB 4204, the Medicare for All Act of 2022 and calls on our state and federal legislators to work toward the immediate enactment of this, or substantially similar pieces of state or federal legislation, that results in comprehensive, affordable health care for all Boulder County residents and is funded by a not-for-profit, single payer system.”

Would you like to help pass a proclamation for nonprofit single-payer universal health care in your school district, town, county, or city? Join Jamestown, Fort Collins, Denver, and now Boulder County. Contact Rich Shannon at rshannon@frii.com to get involved.

Live in Boulder County? Thank your commissioners! commissioners@bouldercounty.org

About the Foundation: A 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit, the Colorado Foundation for Universal Health Care works to achieve guaranteed quality health care for all for life. The Foundation champions a universal health care system, the simplest most cost-effective way to pay for health care. Contributions to the Foundation are tax-deductible.

The post Boulder County Commissioners pass Proclamation in support of Improved Medicare for All appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

By Alison Berg, Rocky Mountain PBS (via AP Storyshare)

Photo credit: Alexander Grey via Unsplash

DENVER — Sev Armstrong felt lost when he received a positive pregnancy test and desperately needed help.

The post Not just a women’s issue: transgender men speak out about abortion and health care experiences appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Editor’s Note: Press Releases are provided to Yellow Scene Magazine. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

> LEARN MORE & REGISTER <

Be the Change, Friend.

Dear Universal Health Care Advocates and Friends,

Have fun and support the movement for universal health care in Colorado at the same time.

The Colorado Foundation for Universal Health Care (CO4UHC) will host a series of fundraising events called Moving Forward for Health Care. I am happy to kick off this series with a Dance & Hula-Hoop-a-Thon from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 10 at North Boulder Park with hydration and light snacks/social time to follow until 5.

Thank you to Boulder dance instructors/hula-hoopers Tracy Goldenberg, Lucy Wallace, and Jennifer McLemore for donating their time to the cause and leading the fun!

You’re invited to:

a) Pledge a certain amount for my campaign for the Colorado Foundation for Universal Health Care for each hour that I dance/hula hoop. My plan is to complete all 4 straight hours. Whew! Thanks so much in advance for your support. Please just email me back with your pledge, or you can donate ahead of time instead here. (Please chose “Make it Monthly” if you can.

OR

b) Join me! You too can collect pledges for each hour that you dance/hula hoop on Sept. 10 in Boulder! (Each hour will be mostly a dance class with some hula hooping.) If you want to participate, let me know swrightuniversalhealth@gmail.com and I’ll provide all the info and materials you need to collect pledges and move forward!

c) Love to move in another way? Want to take pledges for something you can do on your own time? You can also create your own “athon” and collect pledges for it. The Team at CO4UHC and I will support you every step of the way. You could take pledges for every mile you walk, run, roll, bike, swim, or paddleboard during one particular day, week, or even month. We’ll help you set it all up and help you invite your friends to support you!

Thank you for supporting the Colorado Foundation for Universal Health Care at a very important time for this movement! Colorado Rep. Andrew Boesenecker and Sen. Sonya Jaquez Lewis will sponsor a universal health bill to be introduced next session in the Colorado Legislature and we must get the word out!

• Email me (swrightuniversalhealth@gmail.com) make a pledge per hour for my Dance & Hula hoop event
• Click here to donate immediately instead. (Consider making whatever you give monthly as doing so helps the most.)
• Email me if you’d like to join the fun and take your own pledges on Sept. 10* or host your own “athon!” (*Sept. 10 schedule: Noon to 2 p.m. Tracy Goldenberg; 2-3 p.m. Lucy Wallace; 3-3:30 Jen McLemore and 3:30-4 p.m. free dance and hula hooping to finish!) Read more about these instructors here.

Let’s take care, stay healthy and have fun out there!

Thanks and hope to see you soon in person or in support.

~Sara Wright, Director of Communications,
Colorado Foundation for Universal Health Care
Info@couniversalhealth.org or www.couniversalheath.org

> CONTRIBUTE <

The Colorado Foundation for Universal Health Care exists solely on contributions from individuals dedicated to manifesting the reality of Guaranteed Quality Health Care for All for Life.

Universal Health Care:
Let’s do this!

Everyone in. Nobody out.
Health care for all for life!

About the Foundation: A 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit, the Colorado Foundation for Universal Health Care works to achieve guaranteed quality health care for all for life. The Foundation champions a universal health care system, the simplest most cost-effective way to pay for health care. Contributions to the Foundation are tax-deductible.

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Courtesy of Shutterstock

• The FBI executed a search warrant on former president Trump’s Florida resort, Mar-A-Lago. The FBI has been revealed to be investigating Trump for the crimes of: “removal or destruction of government records; destroying or concealing records with the intent to impede, obstruct or influence federal government activity; and violations of the Espionage act regarding unauthorized retention of national defense information.” Agents seized 11 “classified” documents with one marked “top secret,” the highest level of classification. 
• Trump supporters were outraged by the raid. Ricky Shiffer, a well-known and outspoken Trump advocate, attempted to storm an FBI office in Cincinnati, OH armed with an AR-15 in retaliation. He was subsequently killed by police. 
• President Joe Biden announced his Student Loan Forgiveness Plan. Borrowers that took federal loans that make under $125,000 a year and received Pell Grants will be eligible for up to $20,000 in loan forgiveness. Pell Grants are given to students from low- and middle- income families. Borrowers that make less than $125,000 a year and did not receive a Pell Grant will be eligible for up to $10,000. 
• President Biden signed executive order 14076: Protecting Access to Reproductive Health Care. This is an attempt to curb some of the damage done by the overturning of Roe v. Wade. It allows emergency room doctors to perform an abortion if the patient’s life is at risk and the procedure is necessary. It is also an attempt to combat restrictive reproductive State legislatures that have complicated matters of insurance and under which circumstances doctors are allowed to perform certain procedures. 
• Colorado State Senator Kevin Priola announced that he will be switching parties and becoming a Democrat. This is a blow to Republicans trying to take control of the Colorado State Senate. The Colorado GOP is now seeking a recall. 
• A 29-year-old climber visiting from Minnesota fell 35-feet in Eldorado Canyon and survived after being caught by ropes and his climbing partner. He still had a hard ground landing and sustained injuries but is expected to recover. 
• Rocky Mountain Gun Owners and other pro-gun activists filed lawsuits against Louisville and Boulder in protest of recent gun control measures. According to the group’s spokespeople, these are the first of many. 
• The Uvalde School Police Chief, Pete Arredondo, has been fired due to his handling of the May 24th mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas that resulted in the deaths of 19 children aged 8, 9, and 10, and 2 teachers. Arredondo released a statement referring to his termination as “illegal” and as an “unconstitutional public lynching.” Under Arredondo’s command, hundreds of police officers waited for an hour outside of the school before going in to stop the shooter. His termination has been called for by the families of the victims since the tragedy occurred.
• The amount of people that have been fully vaccinated against COVID continues to grow in Colorado. 72.5% of the population have received the full vaccination and 82.2% have received at least one dose.

Small Talk

“There will be another spike this fall. That’s going to happen.”

– Bob McDonald, executive director of Denver Department of Public Health and Environment speaking on the potential rise of COVID cases.

“Some of these bears learn that trash equals food. They see a trash can, they’re going to investigate. The more we can keep them from learning that trash equals food, or humans equal food, the less likely we’re going to have to get involved.”

– Joey Livingston, Colorado Parks and Wildlife Public Information Officer in regard to increasing bear euthanizations resulting from human-bear interactions

“There’s a pretty robust La Niña setting up right now, and when we look back at the last significant La Niña event, that was a very healthy snow year — not only for Colorado, but the entire western United States.”

– Sam Collentine, chief operating officer for the ski-oriented OpenSnow weather forecasting and monitoring service referring to snow predictions for the upcoming winter season

“The county is definitely excited that people can focus on the rebuild and not worry about their lot and getting it cleaned up. Everyone on the debris removal side is definitely breathing a lot easier now.”

– Andrew Barth, a spokesman for Boulder County’s public works department regarding the completion of the Marshall Fire cleanup effort.

“Our teachers and our employees desperately need this.”

– Douglas County Board of Education Director Elizabeth Hanson during a meeting where measures were voted on to pay educators higher wages to help schools retain employees and build new schools

By The Numbers

The post Month in Review | August 2022 appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Groundbreaking population health and value model will improve affordability and access to care

Salt Lake City, UT/Broomfield, CO (April 5, 2022) –  Intermountain Healthcare and SCL Health, two leading nonprofit healthcare organizations, completed their merger, creating a model health system to provide high-quality, accessible, and affordable healthcare to more patients and communities in Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and Kansas.   Good Samaritan Medical Center of Lafayette is now part of Intermountain Healthcare.

This combination employs more than 59,000 caregivers, operates 33 hospitals (including one virtual hospital), and runs 385 clinics across seven states while providing health insurance to one million people in Utah and Idaho. With the close of this merger, Intermountain Healthcare is the eleventh largest nonprofit health system in the U.S.

Mike Leavitt will serve as the new Board Chair for the combined organization. In previous roles, he served in the Cabinet of President George W. Bush as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and Secretary of Health and Human Services and as a three-time elected governor of Utah.

The Board includes representation from the pre-merger boards of both Intermountain Healthcare and SCL Health. The most recent Intermountain Healthcare Board Chair, Gail Miller, and most recent SCL Health Board Chair, Michael L. Fordyce, will continue as members of the combined board. Fordyce will serve as Board Vice-Chair of the Intermountain Healthcare Board and as Board Chair of the Intermountain region board based in Broomfield, Colorado, and Miller will serve as Board Chair of the new region board based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The new organization, Intermountain Healthcare, is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, with regional offices in Broomfield, Colorado, and Las Vegas, Nevada. Intermountain Healthcare President and CEO Marc Harrison, MD, is confident about this united effort. “With this merger, we’ll create a model for the future of healthcare that focuses on keeping people healthy and proactively addresses causes of illness through high-quality, affordable, and accessible care to more patients,” Harrison said. “The merger provides a model for healthcare for the rest of the country.”

Dr. Harrison leads the new organization. Lydia Jumonville, as the Executive Sponsor, will lead the integration of the two systems and work in partnership with Harrison and serve as a member of the new Intermountain Board. In addition to the newly integrated Board of Trustees, the enterprise leadership team has been selected from both systems as the dynamic integration process is now moving forward.

“We’re pleased with how our organizations have come together,” said Jumonville. “Our work is well underway, and we are being very thoughtful about moving the best of our systems forward to continue providing the highest quality of care in the communities we serve. We will advance our mission and better serve the entire region together.”

               SCL Health’s Catholic hospitals will retain their distinctive Catholic names and continue to operate according to existing practices.   Good Samaritan Medical Center President Dawn Anuszkiewicz is enthusiastic about the next chapter.  “This is an incredibly exciting time for the entire community of Good Samaritan Medical Center.   Intermountain and SCL Health share a vision to transform how care is delivered in our service area with patients, caregivers, and communities at the center. This means combining forces to drive a better consumer experience. Our corporate name may be changing, but we will proudly continue to serve the greater Boulder community as Good Samaritan Medical Center.”

About Intermountain Healthcare

Intermountain Healthcare is a nonprofit system of 25 hospitals, 225 clinics, 42,000 employees, a medical group, SelectHealth insurance company, and other health services in Utah, Idaho, and Nevada. Intermountain is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare using evidence-based best practices to consistently deliver high-quality outcomes and sustainable costs.

About SCL Health

SCL Health is a faith-based, nonprofit healthcare system of eight hospitals, 160 physician clinics, and 16,000 employees. Founded by the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth in 1864, SCL Health today provides comprehensive, coordinated care at its hospitals, clinics, home health, hospice, mental health, and safety-net locations in Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and Kansas.

About Good Samaritan Medical Center

Good Samaritan Medical Center is an award-winning, 234-bed acute-care hospital in Lafayette, CO. Opened in 2004, Good Samaritan brings comprehensive, quality care to everyone in Boulder County and the northwest Denver metro area. Good Samaritan is a Level II Trauma Center, a Joint

Commission Primary Stroke and Chest Pain Center, a Center of Excellence in Robotic Surgery, and Colorado’s first designated Baby-Friendly Hospital. Based on a culture of caregivers who put patients and families at the center of everything they do, Good Samaritan has become one of the highest rated and most trusted hospitals in the communities we serve.

The post Intermountain Healthcare and SCL Health Complete Merger appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Editor’s Note: Press Releases are provided to Yellow Scene. In an effort to keep our community informed, we publish some press releases in whole.

DENVER, CO – Legislation to address the health care workforce shortage passed the House Education Committee today unanimously. SB22-003 would permit community colleges to offer BSN programs to nursing students.

“We’re tackling the health care workforce shortage head on,” said Kyle Mullica D-Federal Heights. “Pandemic pressures have only added to the stress and burnout the nursing community has been dealing with. This bill will fast track Coloradans on a path to earning their BSN and will help hospitals find more qualified, talented health care professionals. I’m incredibly proud of the tireless work my nursing colleagues have put in over the past two years to keep Coloradans safe and healthy, now’s our chance to give them the break they deserve by boosting their workforce.”

“Expanding the number of colleges who can offer BSN programs is a win-win for Colorado,” said Tony Exum, D-Colorado Springs. “We’re focused on getting more health care professionals in high-paying, impactful careers and this bill paves the way to increasing Colorado’s nursing workforce.”

If passed, SB22-003 would make it easier for students pursuing certificates in nursing to enroll in Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing (BSN) programs at community colleges. The need for this bill comes at a time when Colorado is facing a significant shortage of health care workers. This bill addresses this need by streamlining the education process for future nurses and getting them in the field faster.

The post House Ed Committee Advances Bill to Boost Health Care Workforce appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

“I can’t imagine not working.”

Carol Shelly enters the preschool she works at with homemade play-dough, pumpkin scented. In her bag are vegetable puppets she crafted. She consults her schedule, which is written on a sticky note stuck to her water bottle. She’s off to Ms. Davis’ classroom for now. Teachers seem to exhale when she walks in their room. 

“Hi Ms. Carol,” a small chorus of children chant. “Come play with us.” 

A former at-home daycare provider, Shelly is employed as an aide at the preschool housed in her church. Shelly was only retired for one summer, which she spent sewing and hanging out with her beloved dog Boo. But when a friend called and asked for help moving into a new home, Shelly was excited to have a project.  

“It felt good to do something for somebody,” Shelly said. “I don’t like putzing around. I need to feel like I’ve accomplished something; and it can’t just be for me.”

Hand-made vegetable puppets Carol Shelly made for the preschool where she works. Photo: Zoe Jennings

Shelly, now in her 70s, has usually worked two jobs at a time. She worked production and ticketing for both a rock promoter and the circus. She did bookkeeping and ticketing at the Lakewood Cultural Center. Shelly has always taken pride in her work. 

Through her jobs at the circus and with the rock promoter she traveled the country. She remembers meeting Elton John, Bob Marley, Etta James, the members of Grateful Dead and The Rolling Stones, among many others. She worked about 400 shows a year. She shared a liquor bottle with Keith Richards and Tina Turner once asked her if she wanted any Chinese takeout. 

“It was kind of like working at the preschool,” Shelly said. “I was doing production, so you had to plan things, and once musicians got there you just tried to keep them busy and keep them happy, although there were no diapers involved.”

When the preschool needed help and word got out to Shelly, no one seemed to be surprised she jumped at the chance, she said. 

“It keeps me young,” Shelly said. “I think being around kids makes you humble. Don’t ask a question you don’t want a straight answer for, and you best be prepared for it.” 

Shelly never hesitates to lift buckets of toys or pick up a child. Her bone density tests have improved from the weight lifting involved with the job.

Carol Shelly enjoys building strength by lifting objects at the preschool. Photo: Zoe Jennings.

“It’s really helped my health, not so much my nerves, but my health,” Shelly jokes. “I hope I can work as long as I physically can.” 

She wonders what her retired friends do all day. “I can’t imagine not working,” Shelly said. “I’ve never had a job I didn’t enjoy.” 

Shelly is grateful she’s able to see the education field evolve from practices she experienced when working at her in-home daycare center and watching her daughter go through school. 

“Kids are so much more informed,” Shelly said. “The methods of teaching are much different. It’s not this cookie-cutter version of things. I love seeing kids receive accolades for their talents, and support where they need it. I think it’s such a marvelous way to approach kids. This has been a whole new chapter in my life.” 

Shelly hopes to travel to Patagonia and Italy soon. Her inspiration is actually pretty simple: she wants to. 

“I’m enjoying this part of my life as much as I’ve enjoyed any other part of it,” Shelly said.  

Shelly approaches aging with a “go for it and be happy” attitude. She pays no mind to older celebrities who don’t represent the authentic picture of aging.

Carol Shelly plays a game of basketball with children at the preschool. Photo: Zoe Jennings.

“I think you either buy into it or you don’t,” Shelly said. “Think about all the older stars that you see pictures of. They all have personal trainers and dietitians.” 

For now, Shelly is grateful she’s able to play with kids and keeps up with an active social life.  

“I have trouble thinking of myself as an older person,” Shelly said. “I know I am, and the kids occasionally ask me about it, but I don’t feel old. I think age is a state of mind.” 

Healthcare for supporting your passions

Shelly’s generation appears younger than previous generations, both physically and mentally. A recent study hypothesized that with education becoming more accessible and mainstream it has slowed cognitive aging in older adults. Shelly learns a lot from the children and teachers at the school. Motivated by a desire to continue learning, Shelly is considering taking college courses to become a lead early childhood educator.

“Our aging population is quite incredible,” said Liz Lycett, a doctor at the Frontier Internal Medicine Office in Longmont, who provides primary care for older adults aged 70 and older. “We have patients older than 75 who do power lifting, downhill skiing, farming, teaching, working, volunteering, horseback riding, and even cattle roping, to name a few. Health care can support aging by recognizing that when folks retire, they cannot retire to their couch. Staying active is the goal.”

“We have patients older than 75 who do power lifting, downhill skiing, farming, teaching, working, volunteering, horseback riding, and even cattle roping, to name a few.”

An upside for older adults in a post-COVID world is increased communication with doctors through telehealth. Plus, many older adults are too busy traveling to make regular in-person appointments. Older adults are often seeking guidance from healthcare professionals to continue doing the things they love. 

“Many ask the question what they can do safely on their aging frame,” Lycett said. “For a patient with osteoporosis and compression fractures, riding horses may be their reason to get up every day, so avoiding it is not an option. Instead, they need assistive devices to mount horses, or suggestions on how to ride with less spinal impact.” 

Lycett cites a few recent medical advances that assist older adults in maintaining mobility and health as they age. Surgical and perioperative advances allow pursuit of joint replacement for osteoarthritis. There are new medications for those with respiratory illnesses. There are some immune therapies for those with degenerative disease such as Rheumatoid Arthritis. There are advances in oncologic care that are less toxic.

“In our communities there is more encouragement to keep folks active as they age, which helps ease the burdens of an aging body,” Lycett said. “There are also some great social groups for older populations. In the past, often children moved away and older relatives were left on their own with little activity or engagement. Now, I care for many grandparents that are so busy they have to decline some invitations and social events because they’re too busy.” 

Lycett’s advice for the aging generation that doesn’t want to stop? “Stay active, and stay social,” Lycett said. “It keeps you young. And of course, take naps if/when you need them so you can keep up. Even if it’s every day—that’s a normal part of aging.” 

Health & beauty tips for a well-lived life

Research coming out of the Memory and Brain Wellness Center at University of Washington Medicine shows a Mediterranean diet to support an aging brain. Mediterranean diets include minimal red meats, whole grains, fruits and vegetables, fish, nuts and healthy fats.

depositphotos.com

As older women are expected to look physically younger than their male counterparts, more older women are rejecting beauty standards by not wearing makeup or refusing to dye their hair. Shelly proudly doesn’t wear makeup or dye her hair. Some people question her about this and suggest that she wear makeup, she said. 

Kaleigh Webb is a local esthetician who works with older adults. She says that many of her older clients just want to come in and relax, usually they get facials. She thinks fondly about her grandmother who came out of retirement to work at Walmart and has been known to date younger suitors. 

Webb recommends clients on blood thinners or any other medications to tell estheticians because they can interact harshly with some products. She recommends microblading, cryotherapy, microneedling, IPL treatments, dermaplaning, chemical peels, anti-aging facials with more natural ingredients, and using the lifting machine for her older clients.

“Chemical peels are really good for fast results,” Webb said. “It’s really good for wrinkles and that darker pigmentation color.” 

In some cases, Webb has seen chemical peels take 10 years off of someone’s face. The client must have about a month of down time after to heal, she said. 

Ingredients to look for in store-bought products are vitamin C, arbutin, kojic acid, licorice extract, niacinamide, and retinols. Webb recommends ordinary retinol cream and Sanitas ReVitaLize mask.

“Peptides are going to be your best friends,” Webb said. “A little trick I’ve learned is when you’re doing your skin care routine, you put moisturizer or any serums on the back of your hands and rub it in because your hands actually age the fastest.”

depositphotos.com

Webb recommends a simple routine that will go a long way to all of her clients. “When you think about it at the end of the day, you don’t really need a big, giant, crazy skincare routine. The ultimate thing is as long as you have a good cleanser, good moisturizer and a good toner, or you can replace the toner with retinol, it doesn’t have to be a crazy 20-step program for your face.” 

Companionship keeps you young

Recent studies suggest that people who feel younger than their actual age suffer less from mental illness and may have increased longevity.

Every Saturday for decades Shelly has eaten lunch with her friends at the same Italian restaurant. Her friend Charley Wilson loves pyrotechnics, “not blowing things up,” he’s quick to add. The two met when their children attended school together. The weekly lunches started when Wilson was out of work as a way to maintain normalcy, and it stuck. Pat and Tony Selby sat at a different table for weekly lunches as well. Soon the group merged.

“I just got tired of turning my head to talk to them,” Wilson said. “I got a crick in my neck.” 

The group enjoys laughing and talking about their hobbies and shared interests. They talk and sing songs from old Broadway shows. Pat and Tony Selby met in Chicago in a rock opera theater group at Columbia College, back in the “hippie days.”

Tony Selby, Charley Wilson, Carol Shelly and Pat Selby (listed left to right) enjoy their weekly lunch together. Photo: Zoe Jennings.

“It was really cool, but I just don’t remember it,” Tony jokes.

Pat worked for the Children’s Chorale as a dance choreographer for 23 years and also performed dances for schools. Pat likes to quilt and give away the quilts to her family and charities. It helps build strength in her speech and hands.

“She has been recovering in leaps and bounds from her stroke,” Shelly said. 

She sips on a Patarita, a margarita without tequila. 

Pat and Tony regularly try different restaurants. They enjoy vacations to Bonaire where they snorkel, dive, and take underwater photography. Tony was a chemist and chemical engineer who has worked in the industrial water technology field since 1965. He still gets called on for certain jobs or to serve as an expert witness in court. 

Pat remembers the generation of women before her didn’t have much freedom, except the suffragettes, she said. World War I pushed some women to have a life beyond their family. 

“I think you have a lot more choices,” Pat tells me, talking about younger generations. “It’s very dynamic. Women are now having children closer to 30. It’s probably better for some of the women.”

“Women are now having children closer to 30. It’s probably better for some of the women.”

Pat and Tony have many children, grandchildren, and some great grandchildren. “It’s been interesting to watch grandchildren grow up and then become parents,” Tony said. 

Wilson’s wife Gwenn recently passed away. Gwenn was a foodie and a caterer. She made ice cream in excess and loved to give it away. The friend group feels different without her, but they support each other through all of life’s hardships.

“Gwenn was a really good cook, and she really liked Italian food,” Wilson said. “When she started going in the kitchen, she would invent things. After we ate, I would go, ‘did you write that down? That was really, really good.’ It was always the same answer every time: ‘I know what I did.’”

Older adults in many ways are reimagining the way aging looks, acts, and feels. They are traversing the country in their RVs, working jobs that they truly enjoy after retirement, and having fun with friends. With medical advances and pushback on social constructs, older adults refuse to be a stereotype. Some push back against the stereotypical angry boomer caricature. There are some shared experiences that living to an older age will always encompass.

Actor Jane Fonda said: “We need to revise how we think of aging. The old paradigm was: You’re born, you peak at midlife, and then you decline into decrepitude. Looking at aging as ascending a staircase, you gain well-being, spirit, soul, wisdom, the ability to be truly intimate, and a life with intention.”

In a consumerist society obsessed with looking young, it’s brave to own your authenticity and not buy into the fear of aging.

The post Aging Authentically: Older Adults Defy Stereotypes appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

COVID exposed all that is wrong with the American Dream and how our healthcare system is failing us.

Let’s settle in and discuss universal healthcare. It can be complex, controversial and often contentious in political debates. For many years, healthcare options in America have been the source of contentious debate. Throw in a pandemic and all that is wrong with our system is revealed. We are using a definition of universal healthcare defined by the World Health Organization as “ensuring that all people have access to needed health services (including prevention, promotion, treatment, rehabilitation and palliation) of sufficient quality to be effective while also ensuring that the use of these services does not expose the user the financial hardship” (1).

The complications around universal healthcare often occur when information is not presented clearly. What, why, and how changing our healthcare system to something that works better and costs less can happen. What do other options look like and how can we start to make a change today? While we might not all agree on the steps to get to the end goal, it has become painfully obvious we need to try and find a common ground to bring healthcare costs down while helping people be healthier through prevention. 

Based on a brief literature review on Google Scholar, I found over 51,000 articles to date discussing the pros and cons of universal healthcare. Several key themes arose in the articles and they included cost, type of care, and systems in other countries. More than can fit into a 3000-word article, so for our purposes, we will stick to the facts regarding the cost of health care in the US, who has what kind of care in America, and what other countries are doing compared to us.

Scientific studies can help you, me, and any other interested people understand the many ways universal health care can impact our lives through COVID and beyond. Universal health care can impact our economy, life choices, and our access to health care. (Spoiler Alert!) The science and data can show us over and over again that exercise, eating well, and mental health can help prevent the onset of disease and illness and that, on a larger scale, will help us decrease healthcare costs. 

Cost of Health Care

The American healthcare system is a huge part of the US economy and our annual individual budgets. U.S. healthcare spending grew 9.7 percent in 2020, reaching $4.1 trillion or $12,530 per person. As a share of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, health spending accounted for 19.7 percent (2). These data can show us that healthcare costs have a significant part of the annual US budget without a universal healthcare plan. The cost of for-profit healthcare by 2030 is estimated to be $16 trillion which will be 32% of our GDP (3). And, without universal healthcare, over 18% of Americans have medical debt and this is up from data presented in 2018 (4). From these numbers, we know that a lot of money is being spent, and a lot of people are still in debt despite the crazy amount of spending. These costs and debt come from premium costs, prescriptions, and other procedural costs. Medical debt is almost unheard of outside of the United States (5). All of these things listed need to be assessed, more transparently reviewed, and re-priced. High expense and high debt can mean health care is too expensive for a good part of America and it will continue to increase our national debt. We are spending more than we are able to afford and at some point this will become a bigger problem. If a health crisis occurs in our already broken system, it is very likely that it will create an even larger, more impactful and lasting effect on our economy and the health of our nation. The cost of care will continue to rise as we need to pay for supplies, staff, and support for testing vaccinations, medications, and more. This will increase premiums, increase debt, and not necessarily improve anyone’s health. Canada restructured its healthcare system and in 1984 instituted a universal healthcare option and it is still being offered today. It’s goal for restructuring was: …to protect, promote and restore the physical and mental well-being of residents of Canada and to facilitate reasonable access to health services without financial or other barriers (6). We can explore rates of debt and bankruptcies in Canada to compare what might happen if we change systems in America. As reported by the Fraser Institute, there are similar bankruptcy and debt levels in Canada as in the US (7).

canada.ca

We are on a roll, so let’s look at more numbers and data to understand what else is costing so much money in America and what is making our healthcare system break. Did you know the leading cause of death in 2020 was heart disease, not COVID? As reported by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) the provisional leading cause-of-death rankings for 2020 indicate that COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death in the US behind heart disease and cancer (8). Did you also know that heart disease and cancer have been the leading causes of death for decades? (9)

[In 2020], COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death in the US behind heart disease and cancer.

Number of deaths due to heart disease and cancer: United States, 1950-2014. Source: cdc.gov

As we look at the numbers of deaths and illnesses in America, we have to ask the question: What would prevention do? Can we work on prevention as faithfully, as a nation, as we did to combat COVID and can it help decrease costs by decreasing risk factors? In theory, the answer is yes. In practice, it seems that if we can start reducing the leading causes of death in America, we might be able to start decreasing costs associated with these illnesses. A study in the UK showed just that. The study showed that any population wide reduction in any cardiovascular risk factor would significantly decrease the cost to the healthcare system (10). It seems logical to think that if we could make some small changes to shift towards prevention through decreased risk factors that, as in other countries, we might see a reduction in healthcare costs. Decreasing risk factors can be done through prevention and through medication. If we use medication, we also need to be aware of the costs associated with pharmaceuticals.

In America, we also spend a lot of money on pharmaceuticals. We spend about 348 billion on prescription medication annually and individuals spend over $1200 per person double the amount spent in the UK, Germany, and Japan (11). These numbers show us that there is a huge share of Americans invested in the pharmaceutical industry with or without any other options to diversify their investment. We need to decrease our investment into medications and focus on other tried and true methods to help decrease costs of healthcare and illnesses that require medications. As reviewed by the Commonwealth Fund, we might benefit from better price negotiations and price control on medications here in the US (12). 

It is mind-blowing that the health product and the pharmaceutical industry spend about 233 million dollars a year lobbying in Washington (13). Just a small reduction in risk factors and interventions with behavior change, lifestyle habits, and decreased medication costs can severely impact our healthcare system in a very positive way and cost a fraction of the amount being spent on lobbying. These small improvements will come at a cost of time and energy to make a change, a willingness to change by pharmaceutical companies, and a lot of re-education that prevention can have an impact on the larger scale economy.

In America… we spend about 348 billion on prescription medication annually and individuals spend over $1200 per person double the amount spent in the UK, Germany, and Japan.

Types of Health Care

In almost all of the world, there is some form of subsidized healthcare or a system that promotes well-being through prevention, education, balanced costs, and transparency. In a short article written by Princeton’s Mimi Chung, she details 4 types of universal health plans that range from total government subsidy to minimal government involvement. She also explains how they can all have components that can be of benefit to our American healthcare system (14). 

Typically we can think of 4 types of universal health care as described by Princeton’s Mimi Chung. 

• Individual Healthcare plans
• Employer Healthcare plans
• Government Healthcare plans
• Hybrid Healthcare plans

Each system has pros and cons and no system is perfect. In America, as of 2019, there are about 10% of people who have no health insurance (15). The costs of each healthcare system would put a different burden on our government structure and on employers as well as individuals. The costs of these healthcare systems can also serve some people better than others and leave others uninsured or underinsured if something bad happens or if there is a “pre-existing” condition. As a side note, no other countries use the term “pre-existing” conditions. It is used in the United States to deny coverage or as a rationale for increasing someone’s premium. COVID helped us realize that there are a lot of costs associated with prevention but these problems existed well before COVID. 

What Other Countries Are Doing

As seen in the chart below, a common denominator across all countries is that healthcare is an expensive line item on a national budget. We stand alone, in America, with the highest prescription costs, costs for disease, and costs for healthcare insurance. We need to stand up, look around us, and see what changes we can make based on the successes in other countries. Clearly our system is broken if it is putting us more in debt and making Americans less healthy in the process.

Source: OECD

While there is not one system that is clearly better than others and they all have pros and cons, in my humble opinion and based on the data I reviewed, I think we need to review and create a hybrid approach with the thought that nothing will be perfect, free, or agreed upon by everyone. We can, however, work to create something marginally better than what we have now to help more people live a healthier lifestyle while decreasing illness and cost associated with it. In America, as of 2019, there are about 10% of people who have no health insurance (16). We, as a country, can do better to redistribute access to health insurance and create better options to build prevention and affordable care into people’s lifestyles. Most other countries include prevention in their universal healthcare options and we can too. 

Let’s put on our thinking caps and figure out ways to decrease costs while stopping the thought process that a pill is always the answer. Sometimes good old hard work, behavior change, and sweat is the answer. Sometimes sweat equity might cost more than just throwing money at a problem. 

Through the healthy debate, always remain respectful of other people’s health choices and keep in mind that our Constitution Preamble states that our government should “promote the general Welfare” and “secure liberty” ”to ourselves and our Posterity”. Pause to understand that every individual in America has a right to both welfare and liberty for themselves and their generations to come. Let’s ask a question here: Is healthcare a human right as a citizen in a country or is it a luxury based on income level, location, access, or other factors?

Is healthcare a human right as a citizen in a country or is it a luxury based on income level, location, access, or other factors?

In summary, cost can be drastically reduced in our broken healthcare system. We can simply start by exploring more of what other countries are doing in the way of prevention, insurance cost sharing, and universal health care options. Whether we start now because of COVID or another disease, the key is to start now for saving money in the long run. The costs associated with heart disease, cancer, COVID, and other killers can severely be reduced if more emphasis was placed on prevention as opposed to care just when the disease occurs. Every individual is able to work towards a healthier lifestyle in some way and with the support of others if they want to. In today’s age there are millions of free resources with social media, internet, nonprofits, and volunteers. People have to want to make a choice to make a healthy change to start making the world a better more cost-effective living space. When COVID hit, we realized how important hand-washing is and how important masks are for prevention and we opened our eyes to what needs to be done to be healthier today for tomorrow. Let’s apply the same principles to other killers in America like heart disease, cancer, and our healthcare systems impact on our larger economy. As Dr. Paul Reed, Director of the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion says: “Although not a cure-all, increasing physical activity directly contributes to improved mental health and better overall health and well-being” (17). We can do better.

1. https://www.who.int/health-topics/universal-health-coverage#:~:text=Universal%20health%20coverage%20means%20that,%2C%20rehabilitation%2C%20and%20palliative%20care.
2. https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHealthExpendData/NationalHealthAccountsHistorical
3. https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Research/HealthCareFinancingReview/List-of-Past-Articles-Items/CMS1191237#:~:text=By%20the%20year%202030%2C%20as,or%2032%20percent%20of%20GDP.
4. https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2021/04/who-had-medical-debt-in-united-states.html
5. https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/medical-bankruptcies-by-country
6. https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/publications/health-system-services/canada-health-act-annual-report-2019-2020.html#c1
7. https://www.fraserinstitute.org/article/medical-bankruptcy-myth
8. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2778234#jvp210048r1
9. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db254.htm
10. https://www.bmj.com/content/343/bmj.d4044.short
11. https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHealthExpendData/NHE-Fact-Sheet,
12. https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2017/oct/paying-prescription-drugs-around-world-why-us-outlier&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1640968094947802&usg=AOvVaw0H_n0cBBiO7woZmAGldIZy
13. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7054854/&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1640968094950845&usg=AOvVaw1c-8I2SvLmZivmuEKyCcYv
14. https://pphr.princeton.edu/2017/12/02/unhealthy-health-care-a-cursory-overview-of-major-health-care-systems/
15. https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?q=health+insurance&page=1&stateGeo=none&searchtype=web
16. https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?q=health+insurance&page=1&stateGeo=none&searchtype=web
17. https://health.gov/news/202112/physical-activity-good-mind-and-body

Gary Gianetti has an M.S. in Allied Health and holds certifications in health, fitness, and exercise sciences. When he’s not coaching, he enjoys outdoor adventures on foot, rock, wheels, and in the air with his little ones and his wife. He is the founder of Healthy Altitudes…For Your Life.

The post America’s Healthcare System appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Sammy is sunshine personified—including her potential for damage and destruction.

When she’s not playing, cuddling and being generally adorable, Sammy chews on anything she can get her jowls around; that includes but is not limited to pencils, shoes, small sticks and large branches, paper and paper towels, blankets, mattresses and couches.

I’ve been told she’ll grow out of it. I’ve also been told she desperately needs training; even by my boss, who had the unfortunate luck of stepping in a pile of Sammy poop during one of few occasions she’s accompanied me to work. She occasionally jumps on people, and because she has no sense of personal space, she tries to perch herself on top of my body while I read or watch TV.

But this is not a story about dog training or potty training or teaching a dog about personal boundaries. Maybe next year, when I can let Sammy out of the house and unleash her on the real world.

This story is about how, for seven days and seven nights, our lives no longer revolved around keeping Sammy out of trouble—but instead, keeping her alive. More accurately, enveloped in our own helplessness, we could do nothing but pray, nod our heads as countless veterinarians told us what wasn’t wrong and what could be wrong and later what probably was wrong, and fork out as much money and credit as we could get our hands on.

In early spring, Jon and I moved in together, and along with Sammy and Emma, my Maine coon cat, we became a family. While Emma is self-controlled and calm, Sammy is constantly dependent and endlessly energetic. She persistently wants love and attention…or she’ll go snooping for something to destroy. But after a couple of months of co-habitation, she became a favorite companion of mine.

And then, one day in June, we woke up early, and nothing was the same. It was a like a light switch turned off. Sammy was lethargic and weak. She wouldn’t eat or drink. She couldn’t keep anything down, and her body rejected anything we could force down her throat—until her vomit was nothing but foam.

We took her to the vet, and they prescribed antibiotics. Her bulldog’s jaw fought fiercely against the pills, and any medication she did get down would come back up. Throughout the week, we’d try to give her boiled chicken and rice. We’d coerce eye droppers of water into her mouth. She wanted none of it. Her head would tremor near constantly.

We took her to the vet’s office three times throughout the week. They tested her, X-rayed her and stared at her with confusion.

On Friday, the situation went from concern to panic. Sammy hadn’t had consistent food or water for five days. And because it was the weekend and the vet’s office would be closed overnight, we took her to the emergency room. I left her there, handed them my credit card, and drove away with tears streaming down my face.

By Saturday morning, no one could tell us what was wrong with her. We took her back to our family vet for a few hours during the day, and they did more tests and more X-rays. Her parvo test came back negative.

Again, more confusion.

We took her to the emergency vet in the afternoon, where the young woman we met with suspected it was: pancreatitis, a rare form of parvo that wouldn’t show up on a test, a bacterial infection or a blockage that wasn’t registering on X-rays.

By this time, we had spent about $1,200 on Sammy’s care. We were told her short-term needs could range from costing another $1,600 to $3,000 and beyond, depending on what we decided to do and what the vet felt was the appropriate step. Everything from exploratory surgery to ultrasounds were tossed around, as we listened in astonishment.

In a fury of tears and sobs, I had to confess: I could no longer hemorrhage money on assumptions. “If we had all the money in the world,” I said, completely unable to control my emotions, “we’d spend whatever we could on fixing this, but we don’t. We can’t keep spending and spending on treatments, tests or procedures that may not work.”

From there, I remember the vet’s blank stare, the word “surrender,” and more tears.

Luckily, our credit was given a nice boost when I was offered access to more than $2,000 in Care Credit, a line of credit for health care services, including care for pets. The tension in the waiting room seemed to clear as the money situation was “fixed.” Still, with the credit, we could probably afford Sammy’s medical costs for two to four more days.

Her needs seemed ever-expanding.

A set of blood tests showed a likelihood of pancreatitis. That meant increased pain medication. The vet was convinced, despite two negative parvo tests, Sammy had the extremely contagious parvo, meaning she needed to be isolated within the facility. Because she had not eaten in days, they would put a feeding tube in her nose.

The hope we were given was this: If her white blood cell count increased and she stopped vomiting and having diarrhea, we would be in the clear. The next 48 hours were pivotal.

So, we left—not with Sammy, not with answers—but with a little more debt and with a sense that we might have a chance to beat whatever it was. That was the turning point for me: having a plan, resources and the ability to measure improvement. We prayed for white blood cells, we prayed for solid food, and we prayed for having Sammy back in our home.

The next day, we visited Sammy in her little isolated area. She looked at us with big, droopy eyes, not able to stand. It was overwhelming sadness, and depression started to sink in: What if we were spending this money only to see her die in the end? What if we spend thousands and still need to surrender her because we can no longer afford to pay? The “what ifs” were sickening.

Meanwhile, Jon and I spent hours immersed in deep, philosophical conversations about what it means to have a dog. For the first time, we discussed the responsibility of not just taking care of our pets on a daily basis, but through the catastrophes.

According to the ASPCA, the average cost of basic food, supplies, medical care and training for a dog or cat is $700 to $875 annually. But no one openly talks about the price of your pet’s life. What happens when your pet’s survival is on the line? How much will you spend to help your pet survive? Jon and I had wildly different answers to these questions.

“She is just a dog,” he told me.

I understand that point of view, but it’s just not how I consider pets. Why get a dog if you are not willing to do what you can to keep her alive? He said his friends have a $500 limit on how much they’ll spend on their dog’s medical needs.

“Maybe we should develop a similar policy?” he suggested.

We argued, debated and questioned if what we had done was best. While I felt guilty that we couldn’t do more, Jon felt guilty that I had forked out so much money for a dog.

But the intense conversations and arguments soon gave way to glee. On Sunday afternoon, we got a call from the doctor. Sammy’s white blood cell count had soared. She had not vomited in 24 hours. If she continued to do well over night, come Monday we could pick her up, take her to our family vet for the day and then take her home at night.

And that’s exactly what we did.  It had been a week of tremendous pain and suffering for the little dog. Something had taken over her body and pushed her to her limits. But she prevailed. Skinny and weak, she finally had the strength to jump up when she saw us coming. She was going home to toys, snacks, comfy couches and lots of stuff to chew on.

When she arrived home, everything changed. She fed from a feeding tube for less than 24 hours and quickly changed to solid food. With the help of some pieces of boiled chicken, she ate her large armada of pills and kept them down. She slept soundly. And so did we.

The outcome is this: We have a plan. We know what our limits are. We know while it’s difficult to put a price tag on a pet’s life, at some point in the distant future, some rare form of a virus or a nasty infection may require us to spend a lot of money on saving our pet’s life. And we’ll better communicate our financial concerns to the vet up front, so we can work with them to avoid extra costs. I’ve also asked that all of our future pets be rescues—to not only limit initial costs but ensure we pick animals that need help.

Sammy celebrated her first birthday last month, which means we’ve got a long way to go. But she’s gained all of her weight back, and I’ve started to tackle her debt. I often tell her she’s one of my most expensive possessions; right behind my college education and my car. She just looks at me, a little confused but very happy—a twig hangs from her mouth and dirt smudges her nose. When her debt is all paid off, I think we’ll get her trained.

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