FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE		Media Contact: Suzanne Beranek
Sept. 13, 2011		Office: 303.953.3668

 
Henneberry honored with Colorado Health Foundation's Iglehart Award

Award recognizes leadership in health care reform in Colorado

DENVER — Joan Henneberry received the distinguished John K. Iglehart Award for Leadership in Health Policy during the recent Colorado Health Symposium at the Keystone Resort & Conference Center. The award recognizes individuals whose wisdom, involvement and leadership have helped define and move forward positive health care reform.

Earlier this year, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper appointed Henneberry as planning director of the Colorado Health Insurance Exchange. In this new role, Henneberry will oversee the implementation of the Exchange, a new marketplace where individuals and small businesses can purchase health insurance coverage. Previously, Henneberry served as executive director of the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, the state agency responsible for public health insurance programs including Medicaid and Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+).

"During some of the most difficult annual budgets in our state's history, [Henneberry] led a remarkable legacy of accomplishment, protecting state programs and services that benefit the most vulnerable Coloradans, bringing greater transparency and accountability to our health care system," said Dr. Stephen Shogan, chair of the Board for the Colorado Health Foundation, during a July 28 reception. "She also played a critical role in supporting a partnership with the hospital industry to create a new, dedicated funding source to provide health coverage to more than 100,000 Coloradans."

Upon moving to Colorado in 1980, Henneberry's career focused on maternal and child health at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, where she worked for 13 years. In the mid 90s, Henneberry and her husband relocated to Washington D.C., where she spent seven years at the National Governors Association. There, she provided consultation to governors and their policy staff on health reform and emerging policy issues. She returned to Colorado in 2004 to work in the private sector before being appointed to the cabinet of Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter in 2007.

The award is named after John K. Iglehart, founding editor of Health Affairs, a health policy journal. In conjunction with the Iglehart Award, the Foundation will make a $10,000 contribution to a healthcare nonprofit of Henneberry's choice. "A donation to a charity that's a passion of mine is as good as the recognition," Henneberry said upon receiving the honor.

The legacy of the annual Colorado Health Symposium, produced by the Colorado Health Foundation, is in large part due to Iglehart's guidance and leadership. In 2007, the award was established to recognize Iglehart's more than 20 years of dedication to the Symposium and his contribution to the health policy discussion. Past award recipients include William Lindsay, president of Lockton Companies LLC and chairman of the Blue Ribbon Commission for Health Care Reform; former Secretary of State Bernie Buescher; and Dr. Jay Want, now principal of Want Healthcare LLC.

For highlights from the Colorado Health Symposium, visit the Symposium's social media webpage.

About the Colorado Health Foundation
The Colorado Health Foundation works to make Colorado the healthiest state in the nation by increasing the number of Coloradans with health insurance, ensuring they have access to quality, coordinated care and encouraging healthy living. The Foundation invests in the community through grants and initiatives to health-related nonprofits that focus on these goals, as well as operating medical education programs to increase the health care workforce. For more information, please visit www.ColoradoHealth.org.