FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Joe O’Leary | Joe.OLeary@cga.ct.gov | 508-479-4969

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March 25, 2026                                                           Joe O’Leary 508-479-4969

Senator Anwar Joins Connecticut Health Professionals for Climate Action to Call For Clean Energy Solutions, Highlight Health Impacts
 

Hartford, CT — State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor), Senate Chair of the Public Health Committee, joined Connecticut Health Professionals for Climate Action (CHPCA) and advocates today to underscore the growing and urgent connections between climate change and human health, while advocating for forward-looking policy solutions to protect communities across the state.

As global temperatures continue to rise, healthcare providers are increasingly witnessing the direct and indirect effects of climate change on patient health. These impacts include worsening cardiopulmonary disease driven by poor air quality, heat-related illnesses such as heat stroke and dehydration, and the expanding spread of infectious diseases. Clinicians across Connecticut are raising concerns about the strain these conditions place on vulnerable populations, including children, the elderly, and those with chronic illnesses.

CHPCA emphasized that Connecticut has remained a leader in climate advocacy despite mounting national and global challenges. Building on this momentum, CHPCA is supporting legislation this year to expand plug-in solar infrastructure statewide. This initiative aims to improve access to clean energy while delivering multiple public health and economic benefits, including reducing harmful air pollutants by decreasing reliance on fossil fuels, lowering greenhouse gas emissions that drive climate change, and alleviating the financial burden of electricity costs in a state with some of the highest rates in the nation.

“Climate change negatively affects the health of all people, but some people are more affected,” said Dr. Mark Mitchell, a public health and environmental health physician and founder of the Connecticut Environmental Justice Leadership Collaborative. “In Connecticut, so-called “natural” gas-fueled power plants, which trigger asthma attacks in people who have asthma, are more likely to be located in communities that already have disproportionately higher rates of asthma. We need to build more rooftop and community solar that is accessible to low-wealth communities and communities with high asthma rates, so that we can close these power plants and reduce the cost of electricity.”

“The more polluted our air, the harder it becomes to breathe, but that’s the tip of the iceberg,” said Sen. Anwar. “Asthma, COPD and other respiratory illnesses can be made worse by exposure to polluted air; the strain it places on the human body can lead to deadly consequences. Add in that pollution worsens our air quality every day and has recently gotten much worse during both heat waves and cold snaps – and our power plants burned oil this winter when natural gas supplies were low – and the picture becomes more dire. We need to find ways to increase renewable energy to support our grid and change this landscape. Countless residents, and their health, are counting on us.”

“Every effort made to educate tomorrow’s doctors on the harmful effects of pollutants and extreme weather on our population’s health is an investment into producing informed advocates for the most vulnerable members of our society in the clinic and beyond,” said Ellie Smith, a current medical student.

Medical professionals across disciplines remain deeply concerned about the accelerating health impacts of climate change and the need to both mitigate risks and adapt healthcare systems for a warming world.

“Climate change is one of the greatest public health challenges of our time, but it is also an opportunity to build a healthier, more resilient future for our state,” said Stefan Marzcuk, medical student and Chair of CHPCA. “Expanded renewable energy infrastructure means cleaner air for our communities, and the solutions Connecticut chooses today can deliver immediate and lasting benefits to our patients.”

CHPCA remains committed to working collaboratively with policymakers, healthcare systems, and communities to advance evidence-based solutions that protect both planetary and human health.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Joe O’Leary | Joe.OLeary@cga.ct.gov | 508-479-4969

When: Wednesday, March 25, 11 a.m.
Who: State Senator Saud Anwar, Connecticut Health Professionals for Climate Action representatives including Chair Sanjiv Godse, MD; Dr. Mark Mitchell of the Connecticut Coalition for Environmental Justice; representatives from climate and environmental action and advocacy groups
Where: LOB Second Floor Atrium

Members of the Connecticut Health Professionals for Climate Action will endorse key bills that will support environmental action, reduce pollution and increase protections for members of the public. Among the concepts they will champion include increased adoption of solar technology, medical protections for utility customers and increased use of renewable energy, as well as continued support for the state’s decarbonization efforts.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Joe O’Leary | Joe.OLeary@cga.ct.gov | 508-479-4969

When: Wednesday, March 25, 11 a.m.
Who: State Senator Saud Anwar, Connecticut Health Professionals for Climate Action representatives including Stefan Marczuk, a UConn Health medical student and Chair of the CHPCA; Dr. Mark Mitchell, founder of the Connecticut Environmental Justice Leadership Collaborative and public health and environmental physician; representatives from climate and environmental action and advocacy groups
Where: Legislative Office Building, Second Floor Atrium

On Wednesday morning, members of the Connecticut Health Professionals for Climate Action will endorse key bills that will support environmental action, reduce pollution and increase protections for members of the public. Among the concepts they will champion include increased adoption of solar technology, medical protections for utility customers and increased use of renewable energy, as well as continued support for the state’s decarbonization efforts.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Joe O’Leary | Joe.OLeary@cga.ct.gov | 508-479-4969

MEDIA ADVISORY – 2PM, CAPITOL LOBBY – “UNDER THE BRIDGE” HOMELESSNESS AWARENESS EXHIBITION

When: Tuesday, March 24, 2026, 2-5 p.m.
Where: State Capitol, North Lobby
Who: State Senator Saud Anwar, members of the Housing Committee, CT Coalition To End Homelessness CEO Sarah Fox, photographer Phil Farnsworth, individuals with stories of their experiences while homeless

This afternoon, the Capitol’s North Lobby will host “Under The Bridge,” a homelessness awareness exhibition featuring the work of photographer Phil Farnsworth, a documentary photographer whose work examines homelessness, humanitarian crisis, conflict and the human cost of political and social decisions.

The exhibit will feature brief remarks from invited speakers and then will remain open to the public for the remainder of the day.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Joe O’Leary | Joe.OLeary@cga.ct.gov | 508-479-4969

March 23, 2026

Today, State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor), Senate Chair of the Public Health Committee, cheered and welcomed the passage of several key bills seeking to improve public health. With the bills moving through the committee, their potential passage could help identify and prevent heart issues among young athletes, advance new steps to identify and treat cancer and ensure parents and guardians receive legal information about their children in certain circumstances.

Senate Bill 194, “An Act Concerning Cardiac Screening and Sudden Cardiac Arrest Prevention For Certain Student Athletes,” would update state law to include sudden cardiac arrest screenings for youth athletes involved in intramural athletics or interscholastic athletics in a high-intensity endurance of power sport.

This is intended to reduce situations where students may push themselves during competition not knowing if they have a potential heart problem; nationally, as many as 100 high school students die each year from sudden cardiac arrest, about one death every three days.

The screening form will ask whether a student experiences chest pain with exertion, unexplained syncope or sudden cardiac arrest or a family history of sudden cardiac arrest or death. Any student who answers yes to the questions will be required to undergo an electrocardiogram test and receive written clearance from a medical professional.

“In the past, we’ve lost too many student athletes to heart conditions discovered too late. This bill directly counters that,” Sen. Anwar said. “This new screening form will connect students with medical histories indicating they could have certain conditions with the testing they need to stay safe. It’s a simple but effective step that I know will save lives.”

Senate Bill 451, “An Act Establishing An Advisory Council on Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Cell Therapy And Other Gene Therapies,” would put a body in place to better monitor gene cell therapies for the treatment of cancer, including rare cancers. Gene therapy and chimeric antigen receptor t-cell therapy are currently in use to save lives and better treat deadly diseases like leukemia, sickle cell disease and hemophilia, with potential to expand them to more rare genetic disorders previously considered untreatable.

The advisory council will advise and make recommendations to the state Public Health department regarding availability of CAR-T therapy, its delivery, education into its use and opportunities to coordinate with researchers, largely with the intent of expanding its overall availability. While the upgrades exist, the council’s aim is partially to ensure expanded access and awareness of the new medical therapies.

“Gene therapy and CAR-T therapy used to be ideas from science fiction, but they’re reality today – and we need to make sure more people can access them,” said Sen. Anwar. “This advisory council would be better able to monitor gene cell therapies for many important rare diseases, advocate for their use and make them more accessible to all patients around Connecticut who could benefit. Lives are in the balance and this will give us opportunities to save more every year.”

Among the changes made by House Bill 5514, “An Act Concerning Various Revisions To The Public Health Statutes,” is an adjustment to how abuse or neglect of individuals with intellectual disabilities are reported. Currently, parents and guardians whose children are abused or neglected by the Department of Social Services may not receive results of investigations into their child’s care.

Under the bill’s changes, if parents or guardians are determined not to be involved with abuse or neglect, they will gain access to reports and investigations regarding their child’s condition.

“As we update and adjust our current laws, we need to account for potential improvements to current standards,” said Sen. Anwar. “This change, brief but meaningful, would simply ensure parents of children who are abused or neglected will receive information regarding the child’s condition.”

With the bills’ passage through the Public Health Committee, they will now head to the Senate and House floor for further consideration.