New Report: Colorado Shows Progress in Three Categories

Colorado has made a good deal of progress in creating a healthier state, but has also run into obstacles on its climb to better health, according to a new report from the Colorado Health Institute.

 “Reaching our Peak 2015: Scorecard for a Healthier Colorado”  analyzes the impact of programs, policies and politics in five areas — schools, communities, the workplace, places where we age, and the health care delivery system.

This year’s “Reaching our Peak” is the third annual look by the Colorado Health Institute at  the state’s progress in those categories.

The report finds that Colorado made advances in aging, communities, and the health care system and held its ground in schools and workplace.

The assessments were based on research into government support, state and federal legislative action, policy and program implementation and expansion, and private sector investment and engagement.

The report also highlights promising programs across the state. Among them: a girls-only school in Denver that promotes exercise as well as academics, a multi-generational storytelling project in Boulder, and a program in Pueblo to bring healthy food into corner stores.

Across Colorado, conversations about health are happening beyond doctors’ office.

School administrators are assessing their health policies, private employers are debating health benefits, and urban planners and policymakers are formally measuring the health impacts of their decisions, the report notes.

Public and private resources are being tapped to encourage healthy choices. Colorado is directing some tobacco tax dollars to public health initiatives, including campaigns to discourage sugary drink consumption and efforts to persuade more employers to set up workplace wellness programs.

Despite this momentum, Colorado ran into obstacles on its climb to better health.

Legislators rejected funding for the Safe Routes to School program, which encourages students to walk and bike to school. Progress is slow in expanding alternatives to traditional nursing homes. And although students are receiving healthier school meals, Colorado lags other states on requirements for school-based physical activity, according to the report.

“Coloradans are working together in creative ways to improve health in their communities,” said Director of Community Health Policy Sara Schmitt, who oversaw the project. “Resources and momentum are moving efforts forward. Now we need to understand and measure their impacts.”

Policy Analyst Jessica Fern was the report's lead author.

Need More Information?
You may contact Sara Schmitt at 720 382-7081 or email her at schmitts@coloradohealthinstitute.org. .