OFFICE OF FISCAL ANALYSIS
Legislative Office Building, Room 5200
Hartford, CT 06106 (860) 240-0200
http://www.cga.ct.gov/ofa
sSB-283
AN ACT ELIMINATING INCOME AND ASSET LIMITS FOR THE
MED-CONNECT PROGRAM FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
AND INCREASING INCOME AND ASSET LIMITS FOR HUSKY C.
Primary Analyst: ES 4/6/22
Contributing Analyst(s): LD
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 23 $ FY 24 $
Social Services, Dept. GF - Cost Significant Significant
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill results in a significant cost to the Department of Social
services (DSS) due to expanding Medicaid eligibility under HUSKY C
and the Medicaid for Employees with Disabilities (MED-Connect)
program.
The bill eliminates the annual income limit ($75,000) and asset limit
($10,000 for individuals and $15,000 for married couples) for purposes
of eligibility for MED-Connect. The number of individuals who would
become eligible under the bill is unknown. For context, there are
approximately 3,600 individuals currently enrolled in the program, 900
of which make more than 200% of the federal poverty level (FPL). The
average Medicaid cost per person is approximately $6,900 annually.
The bill also results in a significant cost to DSS associated with
increasing HUSKY C asset limits (from $1,600 to $5,000 for an individual
and $2,400 to $7,500 for a married couple) and income limits. Current
income limits are based on regional Temporary Family Assistance 2022SB-00283-R000366-FN.DOCX Page 2 of 2
benefit standards and are generally around 60% FPL, compared to the
138% FPL proposed under the bill. If an average distribution of enrollees
across income brackets is assumed, the HUSKY C population would
double, resulting in increased state costs of approximately $1.1 billion.
The actual cost will depend on the number of individuals who meet
the new income and asset requirements under the bill.
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future subject to inflation.