Avon Library to Explore First Amendment, Freedom of the Press

Thomas Jefferson’s famous quote, “our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost,” is the centerpiece of a lecture series hosted by the Avon Public Library examining freedom of the press in America’s democracy. Anti-media rhetoric from President Trump, which was a constant during his campaign and since, has spurred interest in the topic.  The discussions in Avon, which are free, will be led by local educators and historians and continue into the fall.

Upcoming sessions are:

Discovering Katherine Graham  - Wednesday, August 15, 2018, 2:00 pm:  This program will consider relevant sections of Katherine Graham’s Pulitzer Prize winning biography, Personal History (1997) alongside the film adaptation, The Post . It will focus on Graham’s representations of the Newspaper Guild and the pressman’s strike, the Pentagon Papers, the Watergate Affair, and the Vietnam War in light how The Post depicts the struggle to uphold the principles of journalistic integrity when faced with adversity.   The literature discussion will be led by Aimee Pozorski, CCSU English Department; film discussion will be led by Dr. Karen Ritzenhoff, CCSU Communication Department.

“We Hold These Truths”: The Declaration of Independence; A Single Page that Changed the World - Tuesday, August 21, 2018, 2:00 pm:  An interactive and illustrated discussion about the events surrounding the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress will be led by Bev York, Education Director for the Windham Textile and History Museum.  Attendees are asked to review the declaration of Independence prior to the session.

The Bill of Rights for High School Students - Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 3:00 pm:  What can students say and do to exercise the First Amendment right of free speech and freedom of religion in schools?  How has the Supreme Court ruled on these issues, and what avenues of redress are open to students if they think that their rights have been violated?  These and other questions will be explored in this session, led by Stephen McGrath, CCSU History Department.  It is geared for teens, but attendance is not limited.

The Popularity of Alexander Hamilton - Thursday, September 13, 2018, 3:00 pm: An illustrated talk about the inspiring story of the Alexander Hamilton, and his contributions, struggles, and tragic death.  After years of being perceived as having only a supporting role, Hamilton’s star has risen, confirming his belief that “Those who stand for nothing fall for anything.” The discussion will be led by Bev York, Education Director for the Windham Textile and History Museum.

Social Media, the Press, and Us - Monday, September 17, 2018, 6:30 pm:  The everyday reality of media use around the globe is changing rapidly due to the proliferation of smart phones, tablets and multiple screens that allow access to, and immediate dissemination of, the news. This talk will focus on the way social media is not only shaping our human relationships in a digital age but also our understanding of the world around us. How does user-generated content allow for new participatory energies to develop while also deeply affecting cultural identities and generating new types of intimacies. Lecture and discussion will be led by Dr. Karen Ritzenhoff, CCSU Communication Department.

A full description of the upcoming lectures is available, and the library also has resources available through their website, at www.avonctlibrary.info.

CT’s K-12 Enrollment Drops, Demographic Diversity Grows

Between the 2007-08 school year and the just completed 2017-18 school year in Connecticut, total K-12 student enrollment across the state dropped by nearly 40,000 students, reflected a gradual year-over-year decline in every year of the decade. According to state Department of Education data, enrollment in 2007-08 was 574,848, which slid down to 535,025 this past year, a decline of 39,823 students, or just under 7 percent.

The demographic characteristics of Connecticut’s students has changed substantially.  During the past ten years, the percentage of White students has dropped from 65 percent of those enrolled to 53 percent, while the percentage of Hispanic students has grown from 17 percent in 2007-08 to nearly 25 percent (24.85%) during the school year that ended last month. The percentage of Black students has nudged upward, from 13 to 14 percent.

There were 286,506 White students, 132,940 Hispanic students and 68,697 Black or African American Students during the 2017-18 school year.  That compares with 373,818 White students, 96,127 Hispanic students and 80,234 Black students.  In the past decade, the number of Black students has increased by about 11,000 while the number of Hispanic students has grown by more than triple that - about 36,000.

There were 79,256 students who had qualified for Special Education status last year, up from 68,750 in 2007-08.

Seven percent of students, a total of 38,368, qualified for English Learner status, compared with about 5 percent, or 30,088 students, during the 2007-08 academic year.

Looking ahead, there were 36,239 students in Kindergarten in Connecticut public schools last year.  In 2007-08, there were 39,944.

Education, Individual Impact Drive Mission of New Climate Change Center

Former Connecticut Commissioner of Environmental Protection and Administrator of the federal Environmental Protection Agency Gina McCarthy has made the shift from government to academia, with the launch of The Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment (C-CHANGE) at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. C-CHANGE is a new collaboration between Harvard University and Google that will seek to reduce the use of harmful chemicals in building products and materials.  C-CHANGE is committed to transforming science into meaningful actions that will deliver a healthier, more just, and sustainable world, according to the university.

The Center aims to ensure that government officials, business leaders, and the public have access to the best science so they can understand the health and environmental challenges they face, why it matters to them, and how they can get engaged.

McCarthy headed the Connecticut DEP from 2004 to early 2009, and left to become head of EPA's air and radiation office before advancing to the nation’s top environmental protection job in 2013.

Appearing on Conversations on Health Care, a podcast produced by Middletown-based Community Health Center Inc., McCarthy discussed past, present and future.  On the program, hosted by President and Co-founder Mark Masselli and Senior Vice President and Clinical Director Margaret Flinter, McCarthy said C-CHANGE was working to make climate change “very personal, and actionable to individuals, and families and businesses.”  She added, “information is power… I want people to have that information.”

McCarthy said she understands the concerns of some in the environmental community regarding Trump Administration efforts to roll back many of the Obama-era policies, but she said it will be tougher to accomplish than most believe.

“What we did was follow the science, we followed the law, we did great public process around it and I think we did a really good job,” McCarthy said, noting that many of the rule-change proposals of the past year or so are not yet final, and may not become final. “They’re going to have a very hard time.”

Her work at C-CHANGE is designed to accelerate and strengthen public education on climate change and pollution issues, bringing the science down to the individual level, highlighting the impacts on people, rather than the planet.

Reflecting on her time leading EPA, McCarthy said “We showed you can make progress environmentally, to preserve and protect public health, and our natural resources, but you can also, at the same time, do them in very cost effective, reasonable ways that in fact enhanced our economy and jobs.”

Last spring, Gov. Malloy appointed McCarthy to serve as a member of the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Green Bank.

At the C-CHANGE kick-off this spring, Harvard Chan School Dean Michelle Williams said “The Center will pave the way for new research and student engagement on energy systems, food and nutrition, healthier buildings, and products to benefit our school, our country, and the world.”  McCarthy spoke about the importance of broadening support for environmental and climate action by calling attention to the impact of climate change on people’s health and the solutions to address it.

“Climate change isn’t about saving the planet and it’s not about politics, it’s about our kids and making sure they have the opportunity for a healthy, sustainable world,” said McCarthy. “C-CHANGE will ensure that cutting-edge science produced by Harvard Chan School is actionable—that the public understands it, and that it gets into the hands of decision-makers so that science drives decisions.”

C-CHANGE, the Harvard Office for Sustainability, and Google will work together to develop a set of public tools and resources that use the latest scientific research to inform decision-making by large institutions, purchasers, and manufacturers to help transform the marketplace to healthier alternatives. The collaboration,  to the university, aims to improve public health and the well-being of communities, reduce the use of harmful chemicals and leverage lessons learned to create a model that can be replicated by other organizations.

Moving forward, the two groups intend to continue partnering with Harvard’s schools to use the campus as a living lab to test new ideas and verify performance.

Tanning Beds in Gyms Is Concerning Trend, UConn Study Finds

"By pairing exercise with tanning beds, gyms send the message that tanning is part of a healthy lifestyle. It is not," according to University of Connecticut researcher Sherry Pagoto in a study published this month in the Journal of the American Medical Association Dermatology. Pagoto is a professor of allied health sciences and president of the Society of Behavioral Medicine.  “The presence of tanning beds in gyms is a concerning trend.” Pagoto and her colleagues surveyed more than 600 people who had used a tanning bed at least once in their life. Nearly one-quarter (24%) had tanned in a gym at least once, the findings showed.  Those who had tanned at a gym tended to be heavier tanners overall, and were more likely to be what the researchers called "addictive" tanners.

Nearly half the gyms in the U.S. contain tanning beds.  Two of the largest American gym chains (Planet Fitness and Anytime Fitness) with total combined membership of more than 13 million people offer indoor tanning, the study pointed out.  Anytime Fitness and Planet Fitness each have 26 Connecticut locations.

Exercise and tanning are both activities people use to improve their appearance; and people who tan in gyms tan more often – and more addictively – than other people who use tanning beds, according to the study. Exercise reduces the risk of every cancer except one – melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. People who exercise heavily are at greater risk of skin cancer, and yet many gyms in the U.S. have tanning beds. In other words, tanning beds in gyms are targeting people who are already at higher risk of skin cancer, UConn Today explained recently in highlighting the study.

“Exercise and tanning are both things people use to look better, which may be why we see a connection between these two behaviors, and why gyms are providing tanning beds to patrons,” Pagoto said.

The study also found that greater tanning was associated with more frequent exercise, which is especially concerning, because of the connection between heavy exercise and skin cancer risk. Researchers don’t know why exercise is associated with an increased risk of skin cancer. But they do know that the majority of skin cancers are caused by exposure to ultraviolet light, which is what tanning beds produce.

Ongoing, occasional use of tanning beds triples a person’s lifelong risk of melanoma, according to the Melanoma Research Foundation, and the incidence of skin cancer has been rising for 30 years in the U.S. About 91,000 people will be diagnosed with melanoma in 2018, and about 9,000 will die from it, according to the American Cancer Society.

“Indoor tanning is the same class of carcinogen as tobacco, radon, and arsenic,” says Pagoto. “Those are not things you’d want around you while you’re working out.”

Pagoto is also Director of the UConn Center for mHealth and Social Media. She is also a licensed clinical psychologist her research focuses on leveraging technology in the development and delivery of behavioral interventions targeting diet, physical activity, and cancer prevention behaviors. She has had federal funding for her program of research for 14 consecutive years, totaling over $11 million, and has published over 170 papers in peer-reviewed journals, according to the UConn website.

Among the statements from survey respondents: “My urges to indoor tan keep getting stronger if I don’t indoor tan,” and “at times, I have used money intended for bills to pay for my tanning sessions.”

Pagoto was joined in the study by researchers from the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Lincoln memorial University in Tennessee, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Pennsylvania State University and East Tennessee State university.  The study was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Cancer Prevention and Control.

Nuclear Attack on NYC Could Impact CT, Report Suggests

The illustration in a recent edition of New York magazine has drawn some attention in Connecticut.  Accompanying an article describing the anticipated aftermath in the tri-state region of a nuclear attack on New York City, the potential path of nuclear fall-out was shown to extend through Connecticut towns including Greenwich, Stamford, Wilton and others, reaching as far north as the town of Monroe. Within two hours of an attack on Times Square, the article described, a plume of radioactive fallout would “unfurl 60 miles beyond the city, lingering for weeks, contaminating food and water supplies.”

The article explains that “In the hours and days after a nuclear blast, a massive plume of fallout would unfurl past the city’s borders and up the Eastern Seaboard, scattering radioactive dust on everything in its path: people, homes, farms, animals, forests, rivers. The most radioactive region of the plume would reach its full length of 20 miles an hour after the explosion, exposing every unsheltered person in the area to toxic levels of radiation; if it were to spread north from Times Square, it would reach as far as New Rochelle. Within a day, this danger zone would shrink to about a mile in length. Within a week, it would have dissipated completely.

A much bigger but less radioactive region of the plume, called the hot zone, would reach its maximum length of 60 miles — extending, say, as far north as Monroe, Connecticut — two hours after the explosion. A week later, the hot zone would still extend 20 miles from the city, and it would take many more weeks for it to disappear altogether. Although radioactivity in the hot zone would likely be too weak to cause any acute symptoms of radiation sickness, it could still subtly damage the human body and increase the chance of cancer.

How far and in what direction a plume of fallout travels depends on the altitude of the mushroom cloud, as well as temperature, wind, and other meteorological variables. Within an hour of an explosion, FEMA’s Interagency Modeling and Atmospheric Assessment Center would begin to track the plume’s movement, providing updates and projections to federal, state, and local authorities. They would use the information to evacuate people in the opposite direction of the plume and warn people in the plume’s path to seek shelter and avoid consuming any exposed water or food.”

Nearly a decade ago, a New York Times story on the subject included this:  Suppose the unthinkable happened…Do not flee. Get inside any stable building and don’t come out till officials say it’s safe.”  That advice, the Times indicated, was “based on recent scientific analyses showing that a nuclear attack is much more survivable if you immediately shield yourself from the lethal radiation that follows a blast, a simple tactic seen as saving hundreds of thousands of lives. Even staying in a car, the studies show, would reduce casualties by more than 50 percent; hunkering down in a basement would be better by far.”

“We have to get past the mental block that says it’s too terrible to think about,” W. Craig Fugate, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency at the time, told the Times. “We have to be ready to deal with it” and help people learn how to “best protect themselves.”

Connecticut's state website focuses on nuclear preparedness related to an emergency at a nuclear power plant in the state.  The Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security site indicates "While the Dominion Energy- Millstone Station in Waterford is the main focus of emergency planning in Connecticut, the fuel storage site at the former Connecticut Yankee site in Haddam, CT and the Indian Point nuclear power plant in Buchanan, New York, are also included in Connecticut's radiological emergency preparedness and response program."

Communities near those sites are linked, and a calendar of upcoming training is provided.  The United Way also provides information related to evacuation and taking shelter on the agency's website. New Haven conducted an exercise of their host community reception center to prepare for the unlikely event of a nuclear release at the Millstone power plant in 2015; video here:  https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/videos/109671

(New York magazine illustration)

K-12 School District Regionalization May Do More Harm Than Good, Analysis Reveals

“Generalizations about regionalization oversimplify a complex topic,” according to a new report on K-12 School District Regionalization in Greater Hartford, which warns that “K-12 regionalization can actually increase costs and harm educational outcomes.” As some school districts in Connecticut have been considering regionalizing their K-12 education services as a way to reduce costs, the 23-page report prepared for the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving raises some red flags, noting that “policies that call for wholesale regionalization based on imposed criteria (e.g., minimum/maximum number of students) can have unpredictable, and often adverse, consequences.”

In an effort to get a clearer understanding of the potential educational and community impacts of school and district regionalization, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving sponsored the comprehensive analysis to help inform those efforts gathering data on what is known about the effects of K-12 regionalization on education expenditures and educational achievement, based on recent empirical studies.

“The Hartford Foundation is committed to the availability of high-quality, impartial research,” said Scott Gaul, the Hartford Foundation’s Director of Research and Evaluation. “As policymakers continue to consider strategies to reduce the costs of government, the issue of regionalizing services continues to draw attention. This research is intended to provide a clearer picture on the potential benefits and challenges of regionalizing school districts in an effort to support a shared understanding and to support informed decision-making.”

K-12 regionalization generally includes combining school districts, boards of education, and central office staff. This can result in closing schools, eliminating teaching positions, reducing administrative staff, and increasing student-to-teacher ratios, among other consequences, according to the report.  Connecticut, like other New England states, relies mainly on municipalities to provide government services, including K-12 education, to its residents.  In 2017, there were 196 public school districts including town districts, charter school districts, regional districts, and regional education service center districts.

The review of the research, conducted by Connecticut-based Rodriguez Data Solutions, points out that policymakers often promote K-12 regionalization as a way to achieve cost savings, but often fail to consider the consequences for student educational achievement. The report reviewed initiatives to promote K-12 regionalization in several states including Connecticut, Maine, New York and Vermont.  Among the findings:

• While there is no definitive answer on optimum school size, research on Connecticut suggests that a district with 2,500 to 3,000 students may be both cost-effective and foster educational achievement. This roughly matches the range suggested in research from other locations. In at-risk communities, research suggests that elementary school enrollment should not exceed 300 students, and high school enrollment should not exceed 500.
• In rural communities, closing a town’s school can cause the social fabric of a community to unravel. Research also suggests that “impoverished regions often benefit from smaller schools and districts and they can suffer irreversible damage if consolidation occurs.”
• The literature review suggests that deconsolidation of large school districts be considered as an option for cost savings.  In Connecticut, it is estimated that the total savings from the 129 smallest school districts would match the combined equivalent per-pupil savings from the three largest school districts.  Consequently, a significant reduction in statewide education costs requires reducing per-pupil spending in urban areas, not just in small rural districts.

Researchers found that “regionalization may lead to diseconomies of scale resulting from: higher transportation expenses because of longer bus routes, overall increases (leveling up) in staff salaries because of seniority and/or contract renegotiation, and increases in the number of mid-level administrators and administrative support staff.”

Warning of the perils of large, consolidated schools, the report also included the finding that “Students who are involved in extracurricular activities (e.g., band, sports, clubs) have higher graduation rates and it is widely accepted that participation in extracurricular activities decreases as enrollment increases.”

The report also provides a cautionary tale regarding demographics and the impact of school closing decisions:  “While it seems apparent that the closing of school buildings will reduce costs, savings are limited because there may not be buyers, and the facilities still must be maintained by the school district. In already struggling neighborhoods, these now empty school buildings (with boarded windows)

contribute to a downward economic spiral by attracting scavenging, dumping, drug users, and graffiti. The neighborhood children who previously attended the now closed school are then exposed to an increase in crime resulting from the blighted property.”

“Connecticut’s Black and Hispanic children,” the report adds, “are already disproportionately overexposed to crime in their neighborhoods.”

In addition, the report explains, “Students from advantaged (i.e., high socioeconomic status) households have similar educational achievement in both small and large schools. However, the situation is much different for students from low-income communities for whom “… smaller [school] size mediates the association between

socioeconomic status and achievement.” The potential for high educational achievement diminishes for at-risk students when they attend large schools that are disconnected from their communities.”

The report also included an update on the state’s student population.  From 2010-2011 to 2016-2017, the state’s public school enrollment dropped by 25,606 students – a decline in enrollment of 4.5 percent. The analysis found that “most Connecticut school districts have declining enrollments and it is more prevalent in rural areas.”

The report also cited a survey of Vermont voters, who expressed preferences for saving money and maintaining local control of local schools. “Vermont voters had not grasped that saving money may inherently include loss of local control,” the report indicated, concluding that “Vermont voters had conflicting goals, which could also be expected from Connecticut voters.”

Community College Manufacturing Program Continues to Expand

Tunxis Community College in Farmington is establishing Connecticut’s eighth advanced manufacturing education programme as employers struggle to keep up with demand for workers. Brian J. Fries, president of Atlantic Precision Spring Inc., a Bristol-based metal-stamping manufacturer, said the college training program, set to launch in August, can’t come soon enough.

“The last thing I need is to have jobs and not have personnel,” he said following a meeting of employers and state education officials at Tunxis in Farmington.

Jim Lombella, president of Asnuntuck and Tunxis community colleges, said he receives phone calls daily “from employers looking for skilled workers.”

Connecticut is benefiting from rising demand for commercial and military jet engines, submarines and helicopters. However, thousands of manufacturers in the state are scrambling to hire qualified workers to keep up with production and fill jobs left vacant by retiring baby boomers.

More than 13,600 manufacturing workers — machinists, welders, tool and die makers and others — are needed, according to a survey by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association.

The state currently operates advanced manufacturing programs at Asnuntuck, Housatonic, Manchester, Middlesex, Naugatuck Valley, Quinnebaug Valley and Three Rivers community colleges.

“Now we have an opportunity to build on that at Tunxis,” Mark Ojakian, president of Connecticut State Colleges and Universities, said at the meeting.

Many central Connecticut manufacturing industries, including automotive, aerospace, defense and medical equipment, are expected to also benefit. The Tunxis program is close to what Ojakian called a “ripe market for manufacturing” in Bristol, Hartford, New Britain, Newington, Plymouth and Southington.

It will offer associate degrees in manufacturing and machine technology. It also will offer certificates in machine technology and manufacturing electro-mechanical maintenance technology.

The program, accommodating 30 to 50 students, will provide course work that meets the needs of manufacturers and avoids a “disconnect between employers in the region and programs on campus,” Ojakian said.

Citing the state’s fiscal troubles, he asked business representatives to lobby the General Assembly for funding for the advanced manufacturing centers.

“We cannot scale this without additional support,” he said.

Lombella said the initial cost will be $700,000 for laboratory equipment, renovation and other requirements. But, he said, there will be a funding gap between the $16,000 it costs the college to educate each student and tuition of $8,500.

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This article first appeared in The Gulf Today, a 36-page English-language daily newspaper based in the United Arab Emirates.

Engineering Entrepreneurship Leads Three CT Institutions to Collaborate in Masters Program

The latest effort to attract talented entrepreneurs from around the world to the state of Connecticut is a new partnership between the University of Connecticut, Trinity College and the University of New Haven, launching a joint Master’s of Engineering in Global Entrepreneurship. It is the first engineering-focused entrepreneurial graduate degree in the state.

The new master’s degree program aims to create what officials describe as “a nurturing ecosystem” to enable novice entrepreneurs to learn best practices, receive mentorship from veteran entrepreneurs, and be “set-up for success.”

The program, which is fully funded, will recruit individuals from all over the world who are in the early stages of developing start-ups, or who have shown an impressive penchant for entrepreneurship, to apply to the program. Accepted students will receive full tuition remission, a yearly stipend, and significant other resources to help them commercialize their ventures.

“This program, and its related initiatives, will be a major step towards bringing in the best and the brightest from all over the world, giving them the tools they need, and turning them into major entrepreneurial advocates for the state of Connecticut,” said UConn associate dean of engineering Mei Wei. “If we can bring them in early, train them, and open up doors toward commercialization, then we can literally help create start-ups from scratch, and help them to grow roots in this state.”

Similar programs are being offered by universities across the country, including at Brown, Dartmouth, University of Pennsylvania, and Villanova.  Some include a focus at the undergraduate and graduate levels, while others are certificate, rather than degree, programs. Support for the Connecticut program comes from CTNext, with a funding match from UConn’s Schools of Engineering and Business, Trinity College, and the University of New Haven.

Kazem Kazerounian, dean of UConn’s School of Engineering, says it is essential to spread the net wide when recruiting in order to bring in the most talented students, regardless of their state or country of origin, in the same way student-athletes are recruited. “We have to search nationally and internationally to assemble the best possible collection of talent.”

John Elliott, dean of the School of Business, says that creating more entrepreneurial programs in a wider variety of academic concentrations will have a significant impact on Connecticut’s economic future.

“At the School of Business, we have a tremendous opportunity to help other entrepreneurs, in the sciences, engineering, medicine, and other specialties, to develop the business knowledge and meet the mentors and advisers who can help them take a great idea and bring it to the marketplace.

The three institutions will work during the next few months to develop the curriculum, establish an advisory board, create a virtual inter-institutional platform, and plan to start recruiting for the first cohort of students. All three institutions have a lengthy pedigree in engineering, and effective programs to advance entrepreneurship at the undergraduate level.  UNH offers the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN), focused on fostering an entrepreneurial mindset in engineering students.  Trinity College President Joanne Berger-Sweeney has described engineering, entrepreneurship and innovation as part of the college’s DNA.

The program is being co-led by David Noble, professor-in-residence in management, director of the Peter J. Werth Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, and co-director of the UConn Entrepreneurship and Innovation Consortium; Hadi Bozorgmanesh, professor of practice in engineering entrepreneurship and co-director of the UConn Entrepreneurship and Innovation Consortium; Sonia Cardenas, dean of academic affairs and strategic initiatives at Trinity College; and Ron Harichandran, dean of the Tagliatela College of Engineering at the University of New Haven.

Report: Connecticut's Medicaid Expansion Increased Coverage, Access to Preventive Care and Behavioral Health Treatment

A recently issued report found that emergency department visits are down; coverage seen as critical in fight against opioids has expanded, and preventative care and mental health care have become more prevalent – all resulting from a 2010 policy decision made by Connecticut’s elected officials to expand Medicaid coverage. That decision, made collaboratively by a Republican Governor (M. Jodi Rell) and Democratic-controlled legislature – helped to reduce Connecticut’s uninsured rate from 9.1 percent in 2010 to 4.9 percent in 2016 and created a significant source of coverage for preventive health services and behavioral health care, according to the report developed by the Connecticut Health Foundation.

The report examines the impact of HUSKY D, as the Medicaid expansion is known, and highlights a number of key findings:

• Most people covered by HUSKY D are using their insurance to get care. Just over 80 percent of people with HUSKY D used the coverage for preventive or outpatient health services in 2016.
• Emergency department usage among HUSKY D members is down significantly. The rate of emergency department visits fell by 36 percent from 2012 to 2016.
• HUSKY D is a significant source of coverage for behavioral health care. In 2016, more than one in three HUSKY D members – 36 percent – used their coverage to get care for a mental health condition or substance use disorder.
• Outcomes have improved for diabetes patients with HUSKY D. A review of more than 500 HUSKY D members with diabetes found that the percentage whose blood glucose was under control rose from 31 percent to 50 percent from 2012 to 2016.

The report also examines the role HUSKY D plays in other policy work in the state, including addressing the opioid crisis and helping those leaving prison get medical and behavioral health treatment when they return to society. The report notes that before HUSKY D, individuals with substance use disorders were generally not eligible for Medicaid, creating a major barrier to treatment.

“Health insurance coverage is a critical first step to health, but it is also important to ensure that people are able to use that coverage to get care, and for that care to make a difference in people’s health,” said Patricia Baker, president and CEO of the Connecticut Health Foundation. “This research underscores the importance of HUSKY D in giving low-income state residents the tools to take care of their health.”

HUSKY D covers adults ages 19 to 64 who do not have minor children and whose income falls below 138 percent of the poverty level – the equivalent of $16,643 for an individual. (For comparison purposes, a person working 30 hours per week at Connecticut’s minimum wage – $10.10 per hour – would earn $15,756 in a year, the report indicates.)

The report concluded that “nearly eight years after Connecticut expanded HUSKY to cover more low-income adults, HUSKY D has made a significant impact on the state’s uninsured rate and the lives of thousands of people. The majority of those covered are using this insurance to get preventive care, and the rate of emergency department usage has declined, a promising trend.”

The report also notes that the federal government has “financed more than 90 percent of the cost of the program, allowing Connecticut to cover more than 200,000 people with a relatively small budgetary impact.” Currently, the federal government pays 94 percent of the cost of coverage and the state pays 6 percent. The report also identifies challenges associated with HUSKY D, including concerns raised by health care providers about Medicaid payment rates and uncertainty in federal funding.

The report’s analysis indicates that HUSKY D enrollees live in every city and town in Connecticut.  The largest number of covered individuals live in Hartford (18,404), Bridgeport (16,330), New Haven (15,583), Waterbury (13,989), New Britain (8,439) and Stamford (6,110).

The Connecticut Health Foundation is the state’s largest independent health philanthropy dedicated to improving lives by changing health systems. Since it was established in 1999, the foundation has supported innovative grantmaking, public policy research, technical assistance, and convening stakeholders to achieve its mission – to improve the health of the people of Connecticut. Since its creation, the Connecticut Health Foundation has awarded grants totaling more than $60 million in 45 cities and towns throughout the state.

Dangers of Distracted Driving Focus of New Documentary Produced in CT

A decade ago, local producer/director/writer Jennifer Boyd’s documentary Teens Behind the Wheel brought an EMMY Award and generated impactful airing on Connecticut Public Television and PBS, along with much discussion on news programs and increased awareness at driving schools across the country.  Well, it’s a decade later, and technology has provided the foundation for a sequel that is, in many ways, more troubling than the original. 3 Seconds Behind the Wheel, which debuts on Connecticut Public on Thursday evening, is a new documentary and podcast series that follows the lives of eight drivers over six months using in-car cameras and tracking technology to expose the often-hidden behavior of distracted drivers.

The documentary is scheduled for national release in this fall.  It has been described as a “window into our own lives,” by its realistic depiction of the pervasiveness – and dangers - of districted driving.

Why three seconds? That is the amount of time it takes to send a text message, choose a song, or engage in other activities that can impact safe driving behavior. That is also how long it takes to drive across a football field.

Producers gathered weekly data from subjects in Florida and Connecticut to get an honest picture of the many activities drawing drivers’ attention off the task of driving. Experts from MIT, Cambridge Mobile Telematics, Safety Track, and the University of Connecticut provided monitoring equipment, data storage, and expert analysis. The production took well over a year to complete.

The film also gives audiences a firsthand look at emerging technologies that could one day offer solutions to rising crash statistics. The documentary follows researchers at Google who are using driving simulators to develop next-generation in-car infotainment systems, and explores how one Swedish company is experimenting with technology that could one day allow cars to understand human feelings and make driving decisions based on individual needs.

“While many of these drivers’ habits will shock you, this is a very honest and intimate look at human nature,” said Jennifer Boyd, producer, director and writer of 3 Seconds Behind the Wheel. “And it provides a little insight into some truths about all of us.”

State DOT Commissioner James Redeker noted that distracted driving is a major contributor to crashes and deaths on highways.  Officials also noted that “it only takes three seconds to take a life or to end your own.”

Over the past 20 years, Boyd has produced public television documentaries on topics ranging from climate change to gun control, and she's won 9 Emmy Awards for that work.  Assisting her on the latest project were Catherine Sager, Senior Producer/Corporate Liaison; Cecilia Prestamo, Video Editor/Producer and Script Supervisor; Paul Smith, Director of Photography; and Tom Nelson, Editor. Nancy Bauer, Connecticut Public’s Vice President Sales/Corporate Support, is credited a being a driving force in the decision to research and produce the documentary.

3 Seconds Behind the Wheel premieres Thursday, June 21 at 8 p.m. on Connecticut Public Television and will rebroadcast Tuesday, July 17 at 10 p.m. and Saturday, September 15 at 7 p.m. More information about 3 Seconds Behind the Wheel can be found at 3seconds.org. Funding for 3 Seconds Behind the Wheel is made possible by Presenting Sponsor Travelers with additional support from General Motors and the Connecticut Department of Transportation.