Andre Baker Jr

Bridgeport Day, Senior Fraud Awareness, and Legislative Session Updates

View this email in your browser Dear Neighbor, I hope this message finds you well! The House was in session again this week on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The speed of session is picking up, as most days, we stay later and pass more legislation each day. We have less than three weeks left, and my colleagues in the House are working tirelessly to debate and pass meaningful legislation. In this newsletter, you can read about some of the great bills passed in session and more. I would like to invite you to attend Bridgeport Day at the State Capitol, taking place on Monday, May 19, in the North Lobby of the State Capitol from 11 am - 2 pm. This event highlights all the City of Bridgeport has to offer and we will have representation from the city, local nonprofits, advocacy groups, and more!  I wanted to share some key resources for Senior Fraud Awareness Day. The programs below are part of Connecticut's commitment to protecting older adults from fraud and abuse. By staying informed and vigilant, we can work together to protect our seniors!   🛡️ Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP): Operated by the Department of Aging and Disability Services, SMP helps Medicare beneficiaries, their families, and caregivers prevent, detect, and report healthcare fraud, errors, and abuse.   ✔️ One-on-one counseling to review Medicare notices and billing. ✔️ Educational presentations on common types of healthcare fraud. ✔️ Assistance in reporting suspected fraud to appropriate authorities.   🛡️ Senior$afe Program: Managed by the Department of Banking, this program educates financial professionals and the public on recognizing and reporting elder financial exploitation.   ✔️ Training sessions for financial institutions to spot red flags of fraud. ✔️ Consumer education materials on preventing financial abuse.   🛡️ Elder Justice Hotline: Operated by the Office of the Attorney General in collaboration with the Coalition for Elder Justice in Connecticut, the Elder Justice Hotline provides information, assistance, and justice for older adults facing fraud or abuse.   📞 1-860-808-5555   🛡️ AARP Fraud Watch Network: This service is available free of charge to AARP members and non-members alike.   ✔️ Watchdog Alert emails delivering breaking scam information. ✔️ Prevention tips based on the latest information from experts. ✔️ An interactive map with the latest law enforcement warnings. ✔️ Access to a network of people sharing their experiences with scams.  House Democrats passed a critical education bill on Tuesday that honors civically engaged students, reforms crisis response drills, and much more. Establishing the Connecticut State Seal of Civics Education and Engagement recognizes graduating high school seniors who demonstrate civic engagement both inside and outside of the classroom. By reforming school crisis response drills through new standards, we continue to protect and prepare students and staff while being sensitive to mental health needs. Other provisions include requiring school districts to have policies limiting the use of smart devices, addressing antisemitism, providing curriculum on Islamic and Arab Studies, allowing districts to decide whether to allow children under the age of 5 to begin kindergarten early, raising the standard for when a student in pre-K to grade 2 can get an out-of-school suspension, and requiring same-day notification of any use of restraint or seclusion of a student. This legislation thinks holistically about success and support for our students and schools.  House Democrats voted to improve interagency communication and collaboration on homeless services by establishing an interagency council on homelessness.   ➡️ This council will bring together representatives from state agencies, nonprofits, public housing authorities, and individuals with lived experience of homelessness to ensure that our state agencies are coordinating and developing long-term solutions.   ➡️ We are always looking at ways to improve government efficiency and address homelessness head-on.  ✅ Protecting our kids from data harvesting and predatory advertising on social media platforms.   Connecticut took a major step forward as a national leader by passing legislation on Wednesday to rein in big tech’s predatory practices that are reinforcing addictive and harmful choices in minors. We are proud to join a nationwide movement that prioritizes youth mental health over tech profits. Good news for CT libraries! We passed a landmark bill on Thursday that positions the state as a national leader in supporting public libraries facing skyrocketing costs of e-books and digital audiobooks. This legislation stands up for libraries by prohibiting them from entering into or renewing prohibitively expensive contracts and licensing agreements with publishers of digital materials. This legislation also aims to curb libraries’ unsustainable financial burden while ensuring the public continues to have equitable access to digital content. It does so by barring a number of onerous contract terms that publishers have used to price-gouge libraries on e-books and audiobooks. Our libraries are the beating heart of our communities. They shouldn’t have to choose between providing the books their patrons want and accepting terms that interfere with their operations or waste taxpayer dollars.  As always, please feel free to contact me at 800-842-8267 or by email at Andre.Baker@cga.ct.gov. And for news and legislative updates, please visit my official Facebook page. Sincerely, Andre Baker Facebook Website Email Forward to a friend | Unsubscribe from this list | Update subscription preferences