BENEFITS CLIFF
You worked hard and got a promotion. For many workers, that’s actually bad news.
A modest raise may be enough for a family to lose its eligibility for Medicaid or SNAP. However, that same family still cannot afford market-rate insurance and cannot buy groceries on their take-home pay.
Your young adult child gets a low-paying job.
They cannot afford to move out of your house, but their low-paying wages negatively impact your government benefits disproportionately.
MOFJ advocates for changes to eligibility rules so that people are not punished for success.
Expert recommendations:
- Benefit asset limits should be increased.
- The income of young adults living with their families should not be included in eligibility calculations.
- Savings should be rewarded as a path to greater independence.
We are proud to be the lead organization in Growing Together Connecticut’s coalition to address the benefits cliff.
HOUSING
Room for All
Leaders love to talk about affordable housing.
Affordable for whom?
Housing is considered affordable only when the total cost does not exceed a third of a household’s income. More than half of New Haven’s residents are spending more of that — so most of the city is in an affordable housing crisis. Still more residents are making do with housing that’s in such poor condition that it threatens their health.
MOFJ is a voice for deeply affordable housing. We have researched the planning and funding behind so-called affordable housing and proven that it falls short of our community’s needs. Read more here: (LINK to bus tour materials)
Expert recommendations:
- Create more deeply affordable housing. Read our in-depth, by-the-numbers look at why local projects have failed to meet the needs of the lowest-income renters. (Link to bus tour materials.
- Expand Just Cause protections against evictions. Currently, Connecticut renters can be displaced arbitrarily.
H.E.A.L.T.H.
Helping Everyone Achieve Lifelong Trusted Healthcare
We live in communities where lifespans are shorter and disease burdens higher than in more affluent neighborhoods just a few miles away. New Haven is a national leader in health care innovation — but not everyone benefits from it. Our HEALTH (Helping Everyone Achieve Lifelong Trusted Health Care) is a program of MOFJ that advocates policies to create access to affordable, culturally competent care and accessible health care.
Expert recommendations:
- Expand support for community health workers.
- Resist the Privatization of HUSKY
Black Maternal Health
Advancing maternal health equity is one of MOFJ’s highest priorities. The United States continues to have the highest maternal mortality rate among wealthy nations, and in Connecticut, Black women are twice as likely as white women to experience life-threatening pregnancy complications. These disparities are not inevitable — they are the result of systemic inequities that can and must be addressed.
The group will work with the Connecticut Health Foundation’s Maternal Health Equity Blueprint, to strive for coordinated, community-driven solutions that center the voices and lived experiences of those most impacted. Everyone — especially people of color — deserves a pregnancy and postpartum journey that is safe, supported, and dignified.
Family and Child Welfare Collaborative
The Family and Child Welfare Collaborative is a solution-oriented advocacy group dedicated to improving outcomes within the Department of Children and Families (DCF). The Collective focuses on
- Facilitating structured discussions and training centered on effective communication and advocacy by engaging families, community members, and legislators.
- Promoting the reform of the DCF system by collaborating with the agency and community to ensure it fulfills its mission with accountability, transparency, and compassion.
Expert Recommendations:
- Comprehensive workforce training and enforcement for all DCF workers
- Clear client rights must be provided to all clients at the first meeting
- Fair and transparent grievance process