Community Health Centers Look to State Legislature to Sustain Essential Healthcare Coverage
/The Community Health Center Association of Connecticut (CHC/ACT), which advocates for issues concerning the vitality of community health centers and their ability to serve underserved populations, has announced the organization’s legislative priorities for 2026, amidst federal cutbacks and increasing uncertainty about individual health care coverage for thousands of state residents.
In legislative testimony at the State Capitol recently, association Chief Strategy Officer Deb Polun said that the state’s community health centers are “deeply committed to providing access to high quality care for all people in Connecticut.” She pointed out that “Connecticut’s community health centers serve more than 452,000 people each year – including over 262,000 HUSKY enrollees and 67,000 uninsured individuals – providing medical, behavioral health, dental, and some specialty care in hundreds of locations across the state.” Data indicate that 60 percent of patients are insured through Medicaid, according to CHC/ACT.
With the state legislature just one month into a three-month legislative session, CHC/ACT is urging the legislature to:
1. Facilitate implementation of HR 1 to help HUSKY enrollees maintain coverage.
HR 1 requires significant changes to Medicaid enrollment, including more frequent renewals and new work/community engagement reporting. Implementing these changes will require technology upgrades and process improvements at DSS.
Data sharing, aligning requirements with other programs, and using automated verification could help reduce the burden on DSS and on applicants and enrollees. CHC/ACT urges the legislature to make statutory changes and provide the funding needed to support streamlining methods to help residents remain insured and able to access health care. Information about what specifically is needed will become clearer over the first half of 2026.
2. Invest in Community Health Workers.
Public Act 23-186 requires Connecticut to pay for Community Health Worker (CHW) services to Medicaid enrollees. While the governor allocated one-time grant funding for CHWs through the Emergency State Response Reserve, DSS has not yet implemented this requirement through the filing of a Medicaid State Plan Amendment.
Additionally, ongoing funding is needed through the Medicaid program. CHWs are essential to helping residents understand and navigate the many upcoming changes to HUSKY, Covered CT, Access Health CT, and social services programs.
CHWs provide a strong return on investment – research shows savings of up to $4 for every $1 invested – and improve health outcomes. CHC/ACT and others are requesting $2M in state funds to support ongoing reimbursement through Medicaid.
3. Improve access to care for uninsured & underinsured individuals.
CHC/ACT asks the state to provide funding and infrastructure support to ensure that all Connecticut residents, regardless of insurance or other status, can access primary and urgent health care.
4. Continue the State Loan Repayment Program to address workforce shortages.
Originally funded with $7.6M in ARPA dollars, state funding is now needed to sustain this program. CHC/ACT requests $5M in state funding to support physicians, nurse practitioners, psychologists, dentists, and other health professionals in loan repayment.
In legislative testimony, Polun also indicated that CHC/ACT supports the governor’s recommendation to include funding in the FY 2027 budget for flu vaccines for uninsured and underinsured adults. In 2024, community health centers provided flu vaccines to over 92,000 people across Connecticut, regardless of ability to pay. She also urged increased state funding of School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs), which operate in dozens of school districts across the state, “providing convenient access to quality health care for students during the school day.”
