Committee advances Kathleen Ungerholt for state health care advocate; nominee emphasizes outreach, analytics and appeals work

Kathleen Ungerholt, nominated to be Connecticut’s health care advocate, told the Executive Legislative Nominations Committee on Jan. 23 that the office is “a capstone opportunity” and described work to expand outreach and modernize systems that handle appeals and consumer assistance.

Ungerholt, who has served as acting health care advocate for about three months, reviewed her career in hospital finance and administration, insurance benefits, government health work and legal advocacy. “In my brief tenure as acting health care advocate, the office has already begun to increase outreach and accessibility opportunities, improve our educational offerings and our consumer communication, modernize work processes to serve more individuals, and build on stronger relationships with providers, carriers, and state and federal colleagues,” she said.

Ungerholt described the office’s caseload and priorities.…