Raised Bill No. 346 - Public Options for Health Care in Connecticut

• Establishes the ConnectHealth Program to offer high-quality, low-cost health insurance coverage through the ConnectHealth Plan, available to state residents no later than January 1, 2022.

• Creates the ConnectHealth Advisory Council with 10 voting members representing hospitals, community health providers, consumers, nurses, patients, physicians, and health insurers, plus six ex-officio state officials.

• Requires the ConnectHealth Plan to provide essential health benefits at or above qualified health plan levels, with premiums and cost-sharing not exceeding qualified health plans and an income-based affordability scale with a 90% medical loss ratio minimum.

• Establishes the ConnectHealth Trust Account to fund plan operations and state-financed cost-sharing subsidies for enrollees ineligible for federal subsidies under the Affordable Care Act.

• Authorizes the Comptroller to offer coverage to multiemployer plans, nonprofit employers, and small employers (1-50 employees) pooled with state employees, and requires the Commissioner of Social Services to seek federal waiver amendments to expand dental coverage under the state's medical assistance program.