CHA Joins Business Leaders, Governor Lamont, and Legislative Leaders at Legislative Session Recap

Business leaders and policymakers from across Connecticut met on Tuesday, June 24 for the Hartford Business Journal’s “Politics & Policy: 2025 Legislative Session Recap.” 

The event, headlined by Governor Ned Lamont, provided an overview of the latest state and federal policy shifts and their implications for the business community.  House Speaker Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) and Senate Minority Leader Stephen Harding (R-Brookfield) also led a discussion on the outcomes of the legislative session.  Governor Lamont and the legislative leaders spoke about topics including legislation focused on reducing energy costs, concerns about advancing legislation related to artificial intelligence that would make Connecticut an outlier, and the potential for advancing association health plans legislation in the future.

Jennifer Jackson, CEO, CHA, participated in a panel discussion at the event focused on state issues moderated by Chris DiPentima, president and CEO of the Connecticut Business & Industry Association. The panel discussed positives and negatives about legislation that came out of the 2025 legislative session.

Jackson pointed to successful collaboration that took place throughout the session on bills impacting healthcare, artificial intelligence, data privacy, and workforce growth and retention.  She also discussed the encouraging commitment of lawmakers to support Medicaid and their recognition of the challenges hospitals face and pointed to the critical importance of action to meet those commitments especially considering potential changes to Medicaid being considered in Washington.

“We can’t have a strong state without strong hospitals.  Chronic Medicaid underfunding is one of the biggest economic issues in our state,” said Jackson, emphasizing the many ways that Medicaid underpayment strains healthcare delivery and negatively impacts affordability of healthcare for employers and patients. “It’s about healthcare access. It’s about jobs. It’s about economic development.”

Governor Lamont, Speaker Ritter, and Senator Harding also touched on Medicaid during their remarks, with the Governor speaking about concerns related to federal changes and Ritter describing Medicaid as the bedrock of healthcare in this country.

The panelists also discussed the impact of the high cost of energy in Connecticut and the importance of continuous progress on reducing regulatory burdens across industries.

Jackson highlighted the certificate of need process and workforce related regulations as top of mind for hospitals when it comes to regulatory reform.

Watch the event here.