Connecticut lawmakers face high legal hurdles if they want to reform health benefits for retired state workers, according to a new study from the Manhattan Institute. A 2002 Connecticut Supreme Court decision set the precedent, ruling that retiree health benefits could not be changed when a collective bargaining contract ends. However, this precedent contradicts a 2015 U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
About one hospital in five across the U.S. is for-profit. Connecticut — in keeping with regional tradition — is dominated by nonprofit hospitals. Across the country, the share of for-profit hospitals is growing, although the majority of hospitals are still nonprofit. Since 2000, the rate of for-profit ownership has increased from one in seven to one in five, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.
It’s complicated. That’s the best way to describe the ongoing relationship between Gov. Dannel Malloy and Connecticut’s hospitals. Malloy has significantly changed the rules of their game since he took office five years ago - and the changes show no signs of slowing down. The past two weeks brought significant announcements highlighting these changes. First, Malloy intervened to prevent further hospital consolidation, a trend that raises concerns about increased costs and fewer choices. Then, worsening deficit projections led the administration to halt $140 million in payments to hospitals.
Yesterday morning, Yankee Institute president Carol Platt Liebau was a guest on WATR-Waterbury’s “Talk of the Town” with Larry Rifkin (and she’ll be joining Pastor Will on WTIC tomorrow). One of the most interesting parts of the discussion focused on the growing sense — across Connecticut and the nation as a ...
It’s the kind of information that’s released on a summer Friday — when no one’s supposed to be paying attention — for a reason. After all the self-congratulation about how well Connecticut’s version of ObamaCare is “working,” it’s profoundly alarming to learn that a backpack was found containing the personal information of 400 people . ...
The hits just keep on coming for Obamacare. Despite some happy talk from Gov. Dan Malloy and others, the fact is that 27,000 Connecticut residents have seen their health insurance policies cancelled in recent weeks, along with millions of Americans nationwide. While national leaders scramble to fix the broken system, ...