“What are we supposed to tell them?”
~ Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer (R) during SB26-178 testimony
Tell the truth.
Rising healthcare costs aren’t caused by families receiving care. They are the result of policy and budget decisions—about who is included, who is excluded, and who is asked to carry the cost.
Yet during testimony on SB26-178 Health Insurance Affordability Measures, Republican Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer chose a different path. “Do you think that everyone getting insurance should at least pay some insurance premiums?” she asked advocates.
That question tells us everything we need to know. Real leadership doesn’t start from “who should have to prove they deserve care?” It starts with “how do we ensure people can get it?”
When policymakers start from the wrong question, the outcome is always predictable. This is a familiar playbook: Raise fear. Assign blame. Suggest everything could fall apart. It’s not about solving for cost. It’s about creating fear to justify pushing immigrant families out first, and it never stops there.
Families across Colorado are already navigating rising costs and a healthcare system that too often fails them. Blaming uninsured communities will not fix that.
Our elected officials who allow this framing to go unchallenged, who vote alongside it, or who remain silent are complicit in the harm. Public office comes with responsibility. You work for the people of Colorado, not for political convenience or fear-driven narratives.
Exclusion is not political leadership. It’s how oppression is reinforced, which is why our commitment to our community remains non-negotiable.
Our progressive values are not situational. They are not campaign messaging. They are not something we adjust depending on the room. We believe healthcare is a right. We believe access to care should not depend on income, immigration story, or the ability to prove worth.
We believe governing means taking responsibility for the systems you shape, not shifting that responsibility onto the people most impacted by them.
When we center inclusive values, the question changes: How do we build a system that works for all of us?
As SB26-178 moves through the legislature, we are calling on bill sponsors, Joint Budget Committee members, the Governor, and every legislator to stop hedging and start leading. In every vote, every amendment, every floor debate, choose people over politics. Choose access over fear.
If YOU’RE done watching access to care get negotiated away, then this June 30th primary is our moment.
Every eligible voter has a choice: elect leaders who will protect our communities, or accept more excuses for why they couldn’t. See who is ready to fight at: www.coloractionfund.org/endorsements.