DECD Grant for Bridgeport, Access Health Deadline Extended, and more

December 19, 2025



 

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Dear Neighbor,

I hope you and your family are having a happy and healthy holiday season. In this email, you can find information on how you can still enroll for Access Health CT due to the website outage earlier this week, read about medical debt relief on the way for 40,000 residents, and learn about new laws in effect January 1st, 2026. If you have any questions or if my office can be of assistance to you, please reach out to my office at any time at 860-240-8585 or email me at andre.baker@cga.ct.gov. 
 

Department of Economic and Community Development Grant for Bridgeport

The Bridgeport delegation is proud to announce $3 million in state funding for the Bridgeport Economic Development Corporation to support soil remediation at the 16.86-acre site located at 731 Seaview Avenue. Formerly home to CarTech’s steel mill operations, the privately-owned site is impacted by widespread contamination. Remediation will prepare the site for redevelopment, enabling Bridgeport Boatworks to occupy a newly constructed facility and allowing Hornblower Marine to expand their operations within existing on-site buildings.
 

Access Health CT Open Enrollment Extension

Due to a system outage that may have prevented many customers from enrolling in health and dental coverage by the December 15, 2025 deadline for coverage effective January 1, 2026, Access Health CT is extending the enrollment deadline. Customers now have until Saturday, December 20, 2025, at 3:00 p.m. to enroll in coverage beginning January 1, 2026.

To receive coverage effective January 1, 2026, enrollment must be completed by contacting the Access Health CT Call Center. Applications completed on the website will result in coverage beginning February 1, 2026.

Call: 1-855-805-4325 or TTY: 1-855-789-2428

  • Monday–Friday: 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
  • Saturday: 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Customers should expect longer-than-normal hold times and are encouraged to call before 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 20, to ensure enrollment is completed. Assistance is available in more than 100 languages.

If you work with a Certified Broker, please contact your broker for assistance enrolling by Saturday, December 20.

Open Enrollment ends January 15, 2026. You may continue to enroll online at AccessHealthCT.com, but coverage will begin February 1, 2026. 
 

Medical Debt Relief 
 

Gov. Ned Lamont announced this week that an additional 40,000 Connecticut residents will have their medical debts erased, part of an initiative launched in partnership with the nonprofit Undue Medical Debt to give relief to those struggling to pay medical bills.
 
This is the third round of the initiative, which has now eliminated $198 million for 160,000 Connecticut residents since December 2024. The program's arrangement allows the debt to be forgiven at a fraction of its face value - typically costing a few pennies on the dollar.
 
Those affected by this program should receive a letter in the mail this week informing them of their debt forgiveness. There is no application process for this relief, and it cannot be requested.
 
Relieving tens of thousands of Connecticut residents from the stress of paying down burdensome medical debt will make a profound difference in their lives - especially in the holiday season.
 
You can read more about the program here and here.
 

New Laws Effective January 1st, 2026

As we welcome a new year, several laws passed in the last legislative session will take effect on January 1, 2026.

These new measures address key issues impacting our state and its residents, including expanded incentives for farmers, strengthened protections for workers in sensitive professions, and improved reporting requirements to better track higher education enrollment, post-secondary credits, and student opportunities. 

We took a major step forward in advancing policies that support new, diverse housing options across Connecticut. With some of the highest housing costs in the region, too many individuals and families are being priced out of the communities where they work, where they grew up, and where they hope to retire. 

Preventative health care continues to be a priority because early detection saves both lives and long-term costs. To support this, we now require health insurers to cover certain high-priority biomarker tests that aid in early detection, prevention, and treatment. Additionally, we have prohibited the substitution of lower-priced drugs for higher-priced medications for individuals living with multiple sclerosis and arthritis, and we have made this ban permanent for medications used to treat mental health disorders.

You can click the link below to see the full list of new laws taking effect on January 1, 2026. Feel free to reach out to my office if you have any questions. 
New Laws Effective January 1st, 2026
 

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

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