ICYMI in CT Mirror: Connecticut Partnership Plan Shortfalls Expose Risks of Government-Run Health Care

On January 8, 2026, the CT Mirror published a story revealing new insights into the poor financial health of both the state employee health plan and the state government‑controlled Partnership Plan 2.0. Comptroller Sean Scanlon’s office found the Connecticut Partnership Plan, the state‑run health plan for municipal and other public‑sector employees outside of state government, paid almost $23 million more in claims than it collected in member premiums last fiscal year.

According to the CT Mirror, “The plan paid out nearly $731.4 million in claims in the 2024-25 fiscal year, which wrapped last June 30, about $22.6 million more than the premiums it collected from the roughly 60,000 public-sector workers and their family members that it serves.” Additionally, “In its first two fiscal years of operation, the plan paid out $31 million more for claims than it received in premiums.”

Additionally, the state’s own employee health plan has helped push Connecticut over its allotted budget in FY2025: “higher costs for Medicaid coverage and state employe[e] and retiree benefits account for significant portions” of the anticipated budget overruns. This is yet another clear demonstration that government-run health systems in Connecticut are unaffordable and unsustainable, and that expanding state-controlled coverage would only exacerbate these fiscal problems.

Taken together, the ongoing issues with the state employee health plan and the Partnership Plan 2.0 serve as a warning sign for any proposal to expand government-controlled health insurance in Connecticut. Previous analyses of a state-run public option have already shown what this new evidence now underscores: a government-designed, government-run health plan would be unaffordable, require massive and growing taxpayer subsidies, and saddle Connecticut families with dramatic and unsustainable costs as the backstop when the math doesn’t work.

A 2022 report from KNG Health Care Consulting analyzing a past proposal to create a public option in Connecticut found that it could lead to higher taxes, higher premiums and reduced access to quality care.

The report found that existing state revenue from premium taxes and health insurance assessments could fall significantly under current rates – between $71 million and $122 million by 2023 – likely requiring the state to increase taxes. Premiums could also increase for workers and their families, including for those whose employers do not take up the public option. In addition, the number of uninsured individuals under the new public option could increase, depending on the rate of “take-up” among employers.

In addition, the 2022 study estimated that provider reimbursement rates would likely have to be cut by 15 percent. This could negatively impact Connecticut residents’ access to the quality care they need. If the state did not reduce provider reimbursement rates, the state would likely have to collect between $816 million to $1.152 billion to replace lost tax revenue and secure financial footing.

Connecticut families want lower costs and better access, not another risky, government-run experiment. This State Partnership Plan report further proves that state government and bureaucrats should not be trusted to design and run a new health insurance system, especially when the state’s own plan is struggling to live within its means. A move toward a broader, state-run model would insert the government further into the middle of families’ health care decisions, despite their lack of health care expertise, and could mean higher costs, new taxes and reduced access to the doctors and hospitals people rely on.

Instead of doubling down on an unaffordable, unsustainable government-run model that puts the government in charge of health care decisions, Connecticut should focus on practical solutions that lower costs, protect choice, and strengthen the coverage people rely on today.

From Colorado to Washington, state government-controlled health insurance programs do not work for families. Get the latest from Connecticut’s Health Care Future on why these systems do not work HERE.

Read more on the failure of state government-run health care programs HERE. Read the full piece in CT Mirror HERE.