Advocacy

Certificate of Need Reform

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Certificate of Need Reform

Improving Connecticut’s Certificate of Need Process

Together, we can remove barriers to healthcare access and support the state’s economy.

Reforming the Certificate of Need Process

Connecticut’s CON process takes too long. The process, which requires state approval for certain healthcare investments such as purchasing new equipment or updating services, is broken. Delays in the system create barriers to healthcare access and innovation and hurt the healthcare workforce.

  • CON should be a tool to support world-class healthcare - It should also be a tool to support economic competitiveness and patient access.
  • Working in partnership with state officials and policymakers - We can improve the system, adopt best practices, put patients first, and achieve our shared goal to improve access to high-quality healthcare and grow the state’s economy.
  • Delays and excessive administrative burden create barriers - Burden and bureaucracy in the current CON process create barriers to healthcare access and affordability and hamper jobs development and economic growth.

How to make the CON process work better for patients and communities

Improve access to care for patients:

  • Streamline the process, adopt efficient timelines applicable to Office of Health Strategy (OHS) processes, and put reasonable limits on timeline extensions.
  • Add a provision automatically approving a CON if deadlines are not met.
  • Create an expedited review for certain categories and services and reduce redundant information requests to avoid delays that make it more challenging to deliver care to patients.

Protect patients and communities:

  • Ensure all entities providing services or conducting activities governed by the CON process are held to the same standards.
  • Ensure consistent application of the official statutory principles for CON review and eliminate the use of non-germane provisions of approvals and settlement agreements that exceed statutory framework.
  • Consider financial impact and financial feasibility as key principles to every review to ensure the CON process enhances, and does not diminish, healthcare affordability and the economic vitality of the healthcare sector.

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Karen Buckley

Karen Buckley

Vice President, Advocacy

(203) 294-7259
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