CEO History

2011

CEO continued its work to pass meaningful health care reform legislation. During the 2011 legislative session, An Act Concerning Health Care Reform was passed. This law coordinates many of the state's health care functions and creates new health plan options. CEO also took a leadership role in legislation to require a public hearing when health insurance companies want to raise their rates. Legislation passed the general assembly but was vetoed by the Governor. CEO along with allied organizations also advocated for greater consumer representation on Connecticut's health care exchange board. Corporate transparency remained a priority for CEO and we were active in the Connecticut Alliance For a Fair Economy coalition to draw attention to the unfairness and injustice of corporate tax breaks, excessive CEO pay, and income inequality, and the need for good jobs. CEO was also active in the We Are One coalition, which gave constituents the opportunity to meet with their congresspersons to discuss the need for greater employment opportunities and an extension of unemployment benefits.

2010

CEO continued to play a major role in the health care debate at the state and federal level. We remain active with HCAN and traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with elected officials to urge them to pass health care reform and emphasized the need for a public option. On the state level, we are working hard to ensure that SustiNet is implemented in 2012. During the legislative session, we were instrumental in getting legislation passed that required insurance companies to disclose their denial rates.

2009

CEO worked diligently to achieve health care reform at the state and federal level. On the state level we participated in an active coalition that overrode the Governor's veto of SustiNet. SustiNet is an innovative, comprehensive health care plan that is leading the way nationally to guarantee quality, affordable health care to all Connecticut residents. On the federal level we worked with HCAN (Health Care for America Now), a national grassroots campaign of more than 1,000 organizations in 46 states dedicated to wining quality health care. CEO also continued our work as a watchdog of the health insurance industry by monitoring legislation that ensured insurance companies were transparent and held accountable. During the legislative session, CEO played a leadership role in getting legislation passed that required insurance companies to disclose their medical loss ratios (the actual amount spent on health care as opposed to administration, marketing and profit). We also sponsored events in Hartford with Wendell Potter, the whistleblower from CIGNA, and attracted national and international media.

2004/05

With the support of a grant from the Universal Health Care Foundation, CEO becomes a leader in CT's growing universal health care movement by advocating strongly for the expansion of employer based health coverage. CEO has reached out to national leaders regarding efforts around the country to expand such coverage as part of its over-arching mission to hold corporations responsible for the well-being of their employees and communities. The need to hold corporations accountable to their employees in the form of affordable, accessible health care coverage is at the forefront for CEO and its members.

2003

CEO played a lead role in a significant victory, challenging a $46 million subsidy proposal for a Wal-Mart distribution center expected to create low-paying jobs with scarce benefits. Additionally, CEO has continued to directly challenge taxpayer subsidies through an aggressive campaign of research, education and mobilization of our members organizing to win fiscally sound economic development policies that protect low- and moderate-income workers while enhancing our communities as a whole.

1998

Coalition members began an effort with local leaders in Hartford to craft "community standards" during the initial development of the Adriaen's Landing development. Participants included the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance, Vecinos Unidos, Service Employees International Union and many more. Ultimately, 31 state and local groups endorsed the principles and then worked to integrate many of those concepts into the final agreements with the developer. This effort laid the groundwork for another victory in the city of New Britain where two living wage/corporate responsibility ordinances passed the City Council, with CEO providing technical assistance, expert testimony, training, research and support.

1995

CEO members directly intervened in health insurance company merger proceedings to demand that needs of consumers, employees and the community were not left out of the equation. Their intervention significantly impacted the merger proceedings and shifted the focus of the debate to include the employees and communities.