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| Friends and Neighbors,
I hope this message finds you and yours well. The 2022 legislative session is well underway with committee meetings, public hearings, and meetings with our residents as we work to advance legislation to help people in our community and across our state.
The mental health and well-being of our community's youth and families has been a leading priority of mine. While we saw a rise in depression, anxiety, self-harm, and other forms of distress in young people prior to the pandemic, the increased isolation and uncertainty that has come from the past two years has exacerbated this issue. HB 5001 was developed as a bipartisan and collaborative effort to provide additional support, resources and structural change to the children's mental health system in Connecticut. |
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| HB 5001 is a comprehensive proposal encompassing schools, healthcare settings, insurance eligibility, screening tools, and more. A press conference was held on Friday, Feb. 18, to unveil the legislation and discuss the ways in which it will address the needs of Connecticut's mental and behavior health system for children. You can watch the on-demand recording here. |
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| The Public Health Committee and the Committee on Children are holding a joint public hearing via Zoom today on this piece of legislation and SB 2, An Act Expanding Preschool and Mental and Behavioral Services for Children. You can watch live on YouTube. A recording of the hearing will be available after it ends as well.
If you have a story to share about how this bill will impact you, please don't hesitate to reach out to me at Kara.Rochelle@cga.ct.gov. I hope you'll stay involved as this bill moves through the legislature and may undergo some changes. I will keep you updated throughout the process. |
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| COVERED CT LAUNCHES SPECIAL ENROLLMENT PERIOD |
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If you need good, quality, affordable health care and meet certain eligibility requirements, the Covered Connecticut Program, Access Health CT (AHCT) announced a Special Enrollment Period running now through June 30.
The Covered Connecticut Program pays the customer’s portion of the monthly payment (premium) directly to their insurance company. The program also covers the cost-sharing amounts residents normally would have to pay with a health insurance plan, including co-pays, co-insurance, deductibles and maximum out-of-pocket costs.
To qualify for the Covered Connecticut Program, Connecticut residents must:
- meet income requirements
- be a parent or caretaker relative with children in the household that are under age 19 (if the children are age 18 or older, they must be full-time students in secondary school)
- use all the financial help available through Access Health CT
- be enrolled in an eligible Silver level health insurance plan.
To determine if you are eligible, have your questions answered and enroll in the Covered Connecticut Program during this Special Enrollment Period, call the Access Health CT Covered Connecticut Program hotline at 860-241-8478, Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. You can also click on the button “Covered Connecticut” for more details.
Coverage begins on the first of the month following enrollment so, if, for example, a person enrolls on February 5, their coverage begins on March 1. |
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| 100% SCORE ON ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES |
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| Working to protect our environment helps support our state's small businesses and tourism, and creates jobs and healthier communities. During the 2021 legislative session, I was proud to join my colleagues in supporting bills that benefit our residents health and natural resources.
Just a few of the environmental legislative wins last session include restricting toxic PFAS or "forever chemicals" from being used in consumer packaging and firefighting foam; supporting workforce development programs to transition to renewable energy; and approving the Long Island Sound Blue Plan which works to preserve this beautiful resource and support businesses relying on it.
We also passed a bill that takes steps to alleviate energy costs and prioritize energy projects that work to meet our state's emissions reduction goals and improve our air quality. There is a strong body of research that demonstrates children exposed to pollution are more likely to develop asthma and that exposure to pollution can worsen symptoms. According to data from the state Department of Public Health, about 16% of Ansonia school children and 17% of Derby school children have asthma. Approximately 14.3% of students across the state are affected by asthma. By improving our air quality, we can work to create healthier communities.
These are steps in the right direction, and I will continue to work to safeguard our environment for generations to come. You can read more about the scorecard here. |
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| The 2022 legislative session started on February 9! On opening day, Speaker of the House Matt Ritter recognized several COVID-19 Heroes, including TEAM, Inc. CEO David Morgan and its 177 staff members for showing up for our community in a big way throughout the pandemic. Since March 2020, TEAM's staff went to incredible lengths to help families grappling with recession triggered by COVID-19. It kept its child care center open so healthcare workers could go to their jobs, provided unprecedented levels of diapers and baby formula to parents, safely continued Meals on Wheels for seniors, provided nearly 500,000 pounds of food to those experiencing food insecurity, and gave 1,650 families a holiday season when it seemed impossible.
When Speaker Ritter asked for COVID-19 Hero nominations, I didn’t hesitate to nominate TEAM. David Morgan and all of TEAM's staff held the line and supported the people of the 104th District and across the region despite the new and sometimes severe need for resources. |
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| As the 2022 legislative session gets underway, I want to remind you that your voice in this process matters and there are numerous ways for you to get involved to make your voice heard. Below are just some of the resources available to you: |
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Resources to Navigate the 2022 Session
- The non-partisan Office of Legislative Research recently published the 2022 Major Issues report, which summarizes key issues the legislature could take up during the upcoming session.
- Visit the CGA website to view a daily schedule of events, access committee information, find your State Senator or State Representative, and more.
- Read the Bulletin to find out when committees are meeting, how to provide public hearing testimony, and more.
- Register for the CGA's Bill Tracking system, here, to follow any bill as it moves through the legislative process. You will receive notifications when the bill's status changes.
- For information on how to testify on a bill that is up for a public hearing, follow this link.
- Access the CGA's Citizen's Guide, here, for more on how you can become part of the process
- Follow CTN for live coverage of committee meetings and House and Senate floor debates.
- Are you curious about how your tax dollars are spent? The State Comptroller's OpenConnecticut web portal allows residents to track state government spending in real time
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| You can also reach out to me to share your thoughts, ideas, and questions at Kara.Rochelle@cga.ct.gov. |
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| As we take on the 2022 session, let's look back at last year's budget highlights and significant state investments in the 104th Assembly District. I'm proud of these historic investments in Ansonia and Derby and look forward to continuing the hard work this session to achieve real reforms to support the hard working residents of the 104th. |
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| GROWING CT'S MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY |
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| This month, the new Naugatuck Valley Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center was unveiled at Western Connecticut State University. This program was established in partnership between WCSU and the Naugatuck Valley campus of Connecticut State Community College to prepare students for hands-on positions in the manufacturing sector. This is just one of the many ways our state is working to expand this industry through workforce training opportunities. To learn more about this great initiative, click here. You can also read about this on the Danbury Newstimes website here. |
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| Ansonia has been awarded a $427,600 grant to improve air quality and reduce transportation emissions. This funding comes as part of the Federal Highway Administration's Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program and will support improvements to local infrastructure. Ansonia will use this award for non-automobile transportation and electric vehicle charging in its transit-oriented development train station enhancement project.
This is a huge win for our communities, environment, and our state! Click here to learn more. |
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| The Naugatuck Valley Health District recently launched a COVID-19 Home Test Self-Reporting Tool individuals can use to report their COVID-19 test results. Approved at-home COVID-19 test kits are no longer being reported to state and local health departments, creating new case rate trends. As our community transitions to using at-home kits as a primary testing tool, Valley residents can voluntarily report a positive result through the self-reporting website.
Residents who have questions about this service can call the health department at 203-881-3255 ext. 116. You can learn more about this announcement here.
COVID-19 test sites are available across our community. To locate a site near you, please visit Connecticut's coronavirus website here and enter your zip code in the box that says, "Find a COVID TESTING site." For a list of cost-free state-supported COVID-19 testing sites, please click here. You can also call 2-1-1 or visit the 2-1-1 website here to find additional test sites.
Griffin Hospital is offering testing services for individuals 4+ at 130 Division St in Derby. Testing hours are Sunday and Saturday, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. To make an appointment, please call 203-437-6815.
If you would like to get vaccinated against COVID-19, please visit the state's Vaccine Portal here. |
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| SPOTLIGHTING LOCAL EXCELLENCE |
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| Valley Save Our Youth was spotlighted in the CT Post for its work to expand and become a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit. You can read the story here. Additionally, Senator Jorge Cabrera and I worked to secure $150,000 in state funding over the next two years for VSOY so it can begin offering a youth mentoring program to help our area's teens and young adults develop valuable life skills to navigate the world around them, foster strong friendships, and support their social-emotional growth. |
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| Congratulations to Ansonia's Matthew Torres for breaking a world record by nearly a full minute! What a great way to end 2021. You can read more about this here. |
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Watercolors with Rich DiCarlo – Sunday, Feb. 27, 2 p.m.
Enjoy a Sunday afternoon with Valley Arts Council’s Rich DiCarlo painting a fox in the snow. This watercolor workshop is for beginners and seasoned art veterans. Rich’s creative approach levels the playfield so it’s encouraging, challenging, and fun. All materials will be provided so please register in advance by Feb. 24 at ansnaturectr@ansoniact.org. Materials Fee: $10 per person.
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Please feel free to contact me with any thoughts and concerns you may have on Kara.Rochelle@cga.ct.gov or 1-800-842-8267. Follow my Facebook page for regular legislative updates.
All my Best,
Kara Rochelle
State Representative
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