When the major provisions of the federal health reform roll out over the coming months, don’t expect a smooth start. That’s the message from Kevin Counihan, CEO of Access Health CT, the state’s health insurance exchange — a key piece of the law commonly known as Obamacare.
Expect rocky start for Obamacare, key official warns
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Williams reconsiders Casablanca. And no, he wasn’t misinformed about the waters.
Senate President Pro Tem Donald E. Williams Jr., D-Brooklyn, has canceled his trip to Marrakech and Casablanca, Morocco. A spokesman said a family health issue has prompted the cancellation. He was to leave Friday for a weeklong trip sponsored and paid for by the State Legislative Leaders Foundation. No immediate word on who is getting […]
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State launches website to promote long-term care options, jobs
The state has launched a website and media campaign to increase awareness about the choices Connecticut residents have for receiving long-term care and the career options for caregivers. The campaign, called My Place CT, is part of an effort to expand the ability of seniors and people with disabilities to live in communities, rather than […]
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Historic day ends with celebration
Members of Connecticut’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, and their supporters, gathered at Real Art Ways in Hartford Wednesday night to celebrate the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act. Below is a photo gallery of some of the couples reveling at the party — young, old and in-between. First, though, […]
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Malloy vetoes bill loosening requirements on bail bondsmen
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy vetoed a bill Wednesday that legislators passed unanimously, despite a warning from the Department of Criminal Justice that it would have undermined the integrity of the bail bond system. One of the bill’s provisions would have let bail bondsmen off the hook for defendants who fail to answer a court date, […]
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For some, DOMA decision is immediately life-altering
Story revised to clarify the effect of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling for binational couples. For one Connecticut same-sex couple, the decision on the DOMA was immediately life-altering. Lucy Truman and Kelli Ryan, a binational couple living in Newtown, had two things packed Wednesday morning as they anxiously awaited the Supreme Court’s decision: Truman’s suitcases […]
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State enters new budget with modest fiscal cushion
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will have a modest fiscal cushion at his disposal as he enters the final two-year budget of his term next week. Based on a report Wednesday from nonpartisan legislative analysts, state government could hold just over $150 million in its emergency reserve, commonly known as the Rainy Day Fund, when it […]
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State suspends Westport surgical center’s license
A Westport plastic surgeon who is on probation and was fined $29,000 in 2011 has had his center’s license temporarily suspended after state inspectors found several new violations, including rusty equipment and instruments and a fire alarm system that had not worked for five months. Under a June 20 consent order with the state Department […]
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U.S. Supreme Court strikes down DOMA, extends federal benefits to gay couples
The U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 Wednesday to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act, the Clinton-era law that denied an array of federal benefits to married same-sex couples in Connecticut and 11 other states where gay marriage is legal. “The federal statute is invalid, for no legitimate purpose overcomes the purpose and effect to […]
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Reaction to the DOMA ruling from around Connecticut
Gay people and their supporters rejoiced and celebrated all over Connecticut Wednesday following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to strike down the federal Defense of Marriage Act. Here’s what some members of state’s Congressional delegation, the state legislature and others had to say: “The Supreme Court today reaffirmed the core principles of our country – that all […]
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Flanagan leaving Board of Regents for corporate job
Colleen Flanagan Johnson, the former communication director for Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd, has resigned as the director of public affairs of the Board of Regents for Higher Education to take her first private-sector communication job. Flanagan Johnson, who survived turmoil over unauthorized raises that cost two other higher-education officials their […]
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New Haven field for mayor narrows to five
Rep. Gary Holder-Winfield, D-New Haven, has ended his race for mayor of New Haven, throwing his support to a fellow legislator still in the five-way race: Sen. Toni Harp. Paul Bass of the New Haven Independent has the details. Mayor John DeStefano is retiring after 20 years in office.
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Senate leader Williams off to Casablanca
Senate President Pro Tem Donald E. Williams Jr., D-Brooklyn, is leaving Friday for Marrakech and Casablanca, Morocco. His weeklong trip is sponsored and paid for by the State Legislative Leaders Foundation, according to his spokesman, Adam Joseph. Williams will be one of 23 legislative leaders on a trip that the foundation says on its website […]
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CT ahead of the game on Obama climate plan
President Obama’s big climate action plan announced with great fanfare in a major speech on Tuesday is likely to be a piece of cake for Connecticut, especially on one of its three main components –- cutting carbon pollution. As a member of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, the nation’s first power plant emissions reduction and […]
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UConn enrollment to swell next school year
Freshman enrollment is about to swell at the University of Connecticut. The $1.1 billion budget its governing board is preparing to approve Wednesday relies on a 9 percent increase in freshman enrollment next school year. The move to enroll about 400 additional students at the state’s flagship university comes as the number of Connecticut high school […]