Governor Malloy's state budget for Fiscal Years 2014 and 2015 eliminates funding for independent performance monitoring of the HUSKY program. Independent performance monitoring fosters accountability in the Connecticut’s largest health insurance program. Over 425,000 children, parents and pregnant women are enrolled in HUSKY A (Medicaid) and 14,000 children are enrolled in HUSKY B (Children’s Health Insurance Program). Since 1995, the Connecticut General Assembly has appropriated funds for independent performance monitoring in the HUSKY Program as a way of ensuring that tax dollars are spent wisely.
Through this monitoring, Connecticut can follow enrollment trends and utilization of health services, such as well-child care, dental care, emergency care, and prenatal care. Connecticut can evaluate the impact of program and policy changes on enrollment and on utilization, over time and across beneficiary groups. Without independent tracking and oversight, families in HUSKY A may not get the coverage or the care they need–and no one will know. This monitoring, performed by Connecticut Voices for Children, costs Connecticut less than 0.02% of the total cost of the HUSKY Program, with 50 cents of every dollar reimbursed by the federal government.
