Alex Valdez represents Colorado’s House District 5, which encompasses the urban core of Denver. He was elected in 2018 to succeed former House Speaker Crisanta Duran. Alex Valdez was born and raised in the Denver Metro area. After the recession hit, he founded a solar business with a grassroots campaign out of a co-working space in the River North Art District (RiNo). Today, his dedication and hard work have helped that company flourish into one of Colorado’s largest solar companies.
I believe that healthcare is a basic human right, not a privilege. The healthcare system should focus on wellness, prevention, public health, and mental health.
Currently, our system is multi-layered and for-profit. This is not sustainable, because it forces doctors and patients to make health decisions based on money, rather than what’s best for the patient’s health. In order to make our current system profitable, premiums are sky-high and coverage in many cases falls short.
I will work to make healthcare affordable, and put the decisions regarding healthcare in the hands of doctors and patients. In addition, any healthcare solution must cover all healthcare including women’s reproductive health, hormones and gender affirming healthcare for transgender people.
I support a repeal of Colorado’s 3rd amendment and a secondary funding source, so that women who are utilizing the Health First Colorado program (Medicaid) can have access to all healthcare services they choose.
Infrastructure & Transportation
Denver needs bold and innovative ideas to solve our traffic problems. Public transportation needs to be more accessible and affordable. We need to consider the impacts to the environment and our neighborhoods when we make decisions about transportation. Adding lanes to our highways is not always as effective as a long-term solution that includes public transportation, transit-oriented development, and right-of-way improvements for bikes, skateboards, and yes, even rollerblades.
Electric Vehicle (EV) infrastructure must be expanded this will mean mean cleaner air and savings to consumers. I will introduce legislation that will make the advantages of EV’s more accessible, by reducing fees for EV registration, and rewarding businesses that build the infrastructure we need to make clean transportation an accessible reality.
While ride-sharing services are convenient and necessary, they also disproportionately contribute to our traffic congestion. To mitigate this externality, I will propose a small fee to those services, the funds raised by which will be allocated for accessible, affordable, and efficient transportation options.