It’s been over a year since Connecticut residents have been contributing to a state account for paid sick leave and the Connecticut Paid Leave Authority announced that it has paid out $249 million in benefits.
That was for an estimated 97,450 claims through the end of 2022.
The program is funded with a 0.5% payroll deduction.
According to the authority, of the claims about 49% were for an individual’s own health condition, 16% were for pregnancy, 22% were for bonding, 12% were to care for a family member, and 1% were for family violence or military service.
The average time for leave was about 7.6 days. The authority also fielded 383,130 calls, and 85% were answered within 30 seconds or less.
Nearly 63% of the 90,364 claims received by the authority were approved.
The top reason for denial was a lack of documentation.
Andrea Barton Reeves, the first director of the Paid Leave Authority, was nominated to head up the Department of Social Services and the authority appointed Erin Choquette as its CEO.
Choquette was previously the authority’s General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer.
“From day one, Erin Choquette has been intimately involved in nearly every aspect of Connecticut’s best-in-class paid family and medical leave program,” Gov. Ned Lamont said. “She literally helped write the law and has been with the program for its creation, implementation, and execution. The board’s decision to select her to become the Authority’s next CEO is a natural fit and I know she will do a great job in this critical role.”
