HES January 2021 Newsletter

January | 2021

It is our pleasure to announce that we have expanded our organization with a new office location.

Our new address is:

Please update your records with our new address. Our phone numbers and email addresses will remain the same, as will our website address and social media accounts. Our new office space offers us the opportunity to better serve our mission and work with our valuable partners. We look forward to continuing our work with you at our new location.

Feel free to contact us with any questions

Federal Poverty Levels (FPL) are federal guidelines that help to determine eligibility for public programs like Medicaid and CHIP. The guidelines are revised each January. From an equity lens, eligibility determinations based on FPL directly impact health care affordability. Since these levels are the same across the U.S., they are more restrictive in states with high costs of living, like ours.

States determine Medicaid eligibility limits and in 2015, Connecticut reduced eligibility for parents enrolling in HUSKY A. Ultimately over 11,000 parents lost health coverage. In 2021, we and our partners are advocating for increased eligibility. For more information, check out these materials shared by the Medicaid Strategy Group.

(LOB= Legislative Office Building)

The Connecticut legislature convened on Jan. 6 and will adjourn on June 9. A number of health equity priorities already have proposed bills in process. Public hearings have just begun and we will keep you posted as bill language and hearings are announced. The Governor will release his proposed budget in the next 2-3 weeks. As bill language and hearings on Health Equity Solutions’ 2021 policy priorities are announced, we will share details and opportunities to take action.

HES continues to participate in workgroups related to the pandemic, vaccine distribution, and Connecticut’s health systems. If you would like information about any of these conversations with the executive branch or want to share your thoughts, please reach out or follow HES on social media!

Connecticut is currently in Phase 1b of the statewide Covid-19 vaccine rollout plan. For more information on the vaccine please visit: COVID-19 Vaccine in Connecticut: Main Portal.

Join us for a 2-part webinar series on Declaring Racism a Public Health Crisis:
Part 1: Making the Declaration on Feb. 1 at 3pm with guest speaker Tia Taylor Williams from APHA
Part 2: Taking the Next Steps on Feb. 2 at 7 pm with a panel of local leaders