Gov. Ned Lamont opened the new legislative session with proposals to ban flavored vaping product sales and to take initial, tentative steps toward legalizing marijuana.
health care
Posted inHealth
State religious leaders are pushing lawmakers on health care equity
A coalition of faith leaders is asking lawmakers and other state leaders to push for affordable coverage, preserve Medicaid eligibility and improve data collection.
Posted inHealth
Lamont uses executive authority to track cost, quality of health care
The governor will require providers, insurers and others in the health care industry to report their yearly price increases.
Posted inHealth
If cautiously, Lamont exploring health care reform
Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration is part of a working group exploring health care reforms for 2020. He was late to the debate in the last session.
Posted inHealth
Public option hits rocks, key components stripped from bill
State-sponsored health plans for individuals and small businesses are expected to be removed from the bill, along with a provision to re-establish an individual mandate
Posted inHealth
How a repeal of the Affordable Care Act could affect Connecticut
Lawmakers in Connecticut called the possibility of an ACA repeal “stunningly irresponsible” on Thursday.
Posted inHealth
Public vs. private social services debate reaches the Lamont transition
Advocates for public- and private-sector social services workers offered competing recommendations to Gov.-elect Ned Lamont’s transition team on how to finance and deliver state-sponsored human services amidst lean budget conditions.
Posted inPolitics
Conn. Dems close on heath care, the economy — and Trump
WASHINGTON – The closing argument Connecticut’s congressional delegation is making in this historic midterm election hews closely to Democratic messaging about health care and the economy — but they are also making President Donald Trump a focus of their last-minute campaigning.
Posted inHealth
Community Conversations: A need for more health care and health care reform
During this election season, the CT Mirror convened groups of people from around the state to ask their opinions on key campaign issues and their perceptions of the appropriate role of government. A common theme emerged: health care — the cost, the disparities and the need for change.
Posted inPolitics
In a state of great wealth, all the health care some can afford
While the overall health care system in one of the nation’s wealthiest states ranks high, hundreds of thousands of low- and middle-income residents are struggling to afford coverage or seeing their earnings gobbled up by a system with outcomes as disparate as income. Third in a series.
Posted inPolitics
New ‘atlas’ tracks social media sentiment for Lamont, Stefanowski, other candidates
WASHINGTON – A new political tool that tracks sentiment on social media every day showed that more people said nice things about Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ned Lamont than his Republican rival Bob Stefanowski . But the Political Atlas said Stefanowski had Lamont beat when it came to “favorability” which also took into account how many times his name was mentioned on social media.
Posted inNews
More residents above poverty line can’t cover basic costs in CT, report says
Elizabeth Yates and her 2-year-old son are among the 538,529 households in Connecticut that could not afford basic needs such as housing, child care, food, transportation, health care,and technology in 2016. This group constitutes 40 percent of the households in the state, according to a new report released by The United Way of Connecticut.
Posted inHealth
Bills approved mandating ‘essential benefits,’ helping uninsured pregnant women
A bill headed to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s desk would give uninsured women the ability to sign up for health insurance after they learn they are pregnant. A second bill sent to the governor requires individual and small-group health insurance policies to cover the same 10 “essential health benefits” the Affordable Care Act mandates.
Posted inHealth, Money, Politics
Union president: Workers have postponed strike — for now
David Pickus, president of SEIU 1199 New England, appreciates the value of the care provided to the disabled by thousands of Connecticut workers. But he’s not sure state legislators do. He’ll be finding out in a few days, he says, when he meets with state officials to determine whether they can come to wage and program funding terms that will avert a strike tentatively scheduled for next month.
Posted inHealth
Home-care contract wins bipartisan support ahead of vote
A bipartisan coalition of Connecticut lawmakers and the governor voiced support Tuesday for a proposed contract that will raise wages, provide workers’ compensation and increase training programs for about 8,500 home-care workers. The House and Senate are scheduled to vote on the contract Wednesday.