MARCH 2023

When we fight, we win!

The State’s ongoing delay in making Paid Time Off won in our last agreement accessible to PCAs has hurt both caregivers and Consumers.  In recognition of this harm, and thanks to our collective actions, the State of CT has agreed to the following:

• Bonus Paid to all PCAs the week of Juneteenth

On Monday June 19^th, PCAs will receive a payment of Two Hundred and Fifty ($250) Dollars per Consumer-Employer.  A PCA must be an “active PCA”, defined as any PCA who has been paid at least once for service to a Consumer-Employer on a payroll process date between December 23, 2022 and May 12, 2023 and who is listed on the same Consumer-Employer’s care plan, unless separated from employment due to the Consumer-Employer’s death or admission to a health care institution.

• PTO accrual began for all PCAs December 16th, 2022

PTO accrual began effective December 16, 2022, and will continue to accrue and be added to your bank until the point when the new payroll agenda has been on-boarded and has the ability to process and pay PTO to PCAs.

• Health Insurance Stipend Application Reopened until Friday, April 7, 2023

A second round of Premium Assistance applications will be accepted up through April 7, 2023, for payment on May 1, 2023. You can apply for the May 1st payment if you did not receive the initial stipend issued March 13, 2023 and if you do not have access to health insurance through Husky, another job, a spouse, OR if you currently pay out of pocket for a plan. In order to get the stipend, you will need to attach your Husky denial (screenshot or letter) to your application.

• Special Enrollment Period for PCAs on Access Health CT runs until May 15, 2023

Access Health CT will have a dedicated phone line for PCAs at (844) 589-3612. 

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HOW TO APPLY FOR THE HEALTH INSURANCE STIPEND:

If you are uninsured OR currently paying out of pocket for a health insurance plan (and did not receive the first round of stipends paid out 3/13/23), you are eligible for a health insurance stipend to help with the costs of coverage! 

Step 1: Save your denial screenshot or letter from Husky.  If you don’t have a denial dated within the past 3 months, you will need to apply by calling Access Health’s PCA Hotline at (844) 589-3612 or going to www.accesshealthct.com to complete the application for Husky / Covered CT.  When applying, be sure to check the box or indicate that you would like to apply for financial assistance, this will ensure you are reviewed for all of the available health insurance groups mentioned above.

Step 2: Submit the application for the Health Insurance Stipend to the Fiscal Intermediary (Allied or Sunset Shores). Allied’s application is in a linked form that can be found here, and Sunset Shores has a paper application (PDF) found here. Make sure you Husky denial screenshot or letter is included with your application.

Step 3: For eligible applications received by April 7, 2023, you’ll receive your benefit payment as part of a special deposit paid out on Monday, May 1, 2023.  You can use your benefit payment to return to ACCESS Health CT to purchase a health plan in a special enrollment period ending May 15, 2023.

CÓMO SOLICITAR LA ASIGNACIÓN DE SUBSIDIO DE SEGURO DE SALUD:

Si no tiene seguro o si actualmente está pagando de su bolsillo por un plan de seguro de salud (y no recibió la primera ronda de subsidio el 13/3/23), ¡es elegible para una asignación de subsidio de seguro de salud para ayudar con los costos de cobertura!

Paso 1: Guarde la captura de pantalla de denegación o la carta de Husky. Si no tiene una denegación con fecha dentro de los últimos 3 meses, deberá solicitar llamando a la línea directa de PCA de Access Health al (844) 589-3612 o entrando a www.accesshealthct.com para completar la solicitud para Husky / Covered CT. Al solicitar, asegúrese de marcar la casilla o indicar que desea solicitar asistencia financiera, esto garantizará que se revise para todos los grupos de seguro de salud mencionados anteriormente.

Paso 2: Envíe la solicitud para la Asignación de subsidio de Seguro de Salud al Intermediario Financiero (Allied o Sunset Shores). La solicitud de Allied está en un formulario vinculado que se puede encontrar aquí, y Sunset Shores tiene una solicitud en papel (PDF) que se puede encontrar aquí. Asegúrese de que su captura de pantalla de denegación de Husky o carta esté incluida con su solicitud.

Paso 3: Para las solicitudes elegibles recibidas antes del 7 de abril de 2023, recibirá su pago de beneficio como parte de un depósito especial pagado el lunes 1 de mayo de 2023. Puede usar su pago de beneficio para volver a ACCESS Health CT para comprar un plan de salud en un período de inscripción especial que finaliza el 15 de mayo de 2023.

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Other Resources & Links:

Paid Family & Medical Leave: The new Paid Family & Medical leave law went into effect 1/1/22 and is designed for CT workers who need time off due to a serious health condition or to care for a loved one with a serious health condition (when 3+ consecutive days off are needed).  Apply here: https://bit.ly/3v0QjYr

COVID-19 Essential Worker Relief Fund: If you had COVID between March 10th, 2020 and December 31st 2022, you are eligible to apply for the COVID-19 Essential Worker Relief fund to cover missed work, out of pocket medical costs, or burial costs. Link here: https://bit.ly/3Phi4DJ

Workers Compensation Insurance: For work-related injury or illness (including COVID-19 contracted at work), file for workers comp at: https://bit.ly/3NbVRF9

If you haven’t been paid accurately or on time: File a Notice of Nonpayment at https://bit.ly/39p592c

If your Consumer needs to contact their Care Manager Regarding budgetary problems or to Access Overtime: Contact your care manager for DSS consumers at https://bit.ly/3N9jtdy and for DDS consumers at https://bit.ly/3PmE0NO.  If your Consumer needs to request a fair Hearing to appeal changes to their budget, go to https://bit.ly/3MeozVX.

If you need access to PPE (including specialty PPE): for DSS consumers at https://bit.ly/3l84Xa1 and for DDS consumers at https://tinyurl.com/y5hrleee (Eng) or https://tinyurl.com/y3gbccus (Span)

How to Join the Union: Help home care workers have a stronger voice by standing with us and joining the Union today at: https://bit.ly/3NeHOP6 (Disponible en español aquí: https://bit.ly/3ByuYZ5)

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