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Connecticut lawmakers press House Bill 5322 to formalize endometriosis working group
Summary
State Rep. Jillian Gilchrist said House Bill 5322 would establish a legislatively housed working group on endometriosis; sponsors are seeking substitute language, a legislative commission home and a dedicated budget line for a biorepository while avoiding an across‑the‑board 20% cut.
State Rep. Jillian Gilchrist, chair of the Connecticut Endometriosis Working Group, told members at the group’s March meeting that House Bill 5322 — “an act concerning a working group regarding endometriosis” — remains under consideration in the legislature and that substitute language has been shared with committee counsel.
The bill, Gilchrist said, would formally establish the working group and the sponsors are recommending that it be housed at the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity and Opportunity rather than within Human Services or a standing health committee. She also said the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists requested a seat on the working group and that its participation may be made mandatory in the legislation.
Why it matters: supporters said formal legislative placement would provide stability and visibility for statewide coordination on diagnosis, research and care standards. Gilchrist described the recommended housing as “safer” and said that being part of a legislative commission better fits the group’s intended role.
The meeting also flagged a budget question tied to the biorepository that supports endometriosis research. Gilchrist said the repository’s funding currently sits inside the University of Connecticut Health Center’s block grant and that the working group is pushing for a separate line item to make the money’s purpose explicit. She cautioned the group about a proposed 20% across‑the‑board cut from the governor and said she is advocating to shield the biorepository from reductions.
Members discussed outreach strategies to secure committee and appropriations attention, including targeted contacts to higher education subcommittee members and public health committee members. Gilchrist asked participants who had testified at last week’s public hearing to continue outreach and offered to circulate the working group bill number in follow‑up emails to facilitate constituent contact with legislators.
Next steps: Gilchrist said committee counsel may either redraft the bill prior to a committee vote or allow the bill to move forward as‑filed and amend it on the House floor. The working group will continue coordinated outreach to appropriations subcommittees and to individual legislators to protect the repository line and advance the bill.
The working group scheduled its next meeting for Monday, April 13 at 1:00 p.m.
