ABOUT

Our Mission:

Through advocacy, education, and networking, The CT Association of School Based Health Centers positions SBHCs as leaders in the broader healthcare system for CT's children and adolescents.

History

The first Connecticut comprehensive school-based health center, the Body Shop, was established in 1982. The Body Shop is still in operation, meeting students' health needs attending New Haven's Wilbur Cross High School.

The health center was created in partnership with the New Haven Board of Education, the Fair Haven Community Health Clinic, Yale-New Haven Hospital Adolescent Medicine Department and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. A few years later, the City of Bridgeport established the first state-funded SBHC.

What is a School-Based Health Center?

Connecticut's School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) are comprehensive primary health care facilities licensed as outpatient clinics or as hospital satellites. The SBHCs are located within or on school grounds and serve students in grades pre-K-12. Multi-disciplinary teams of pediatric and adolescent health specialists staff the health centers, including nurse practitioners, physician assistants, social workers, physicians and in some cases, dentists and dental hygienists.

A school-based health center is not the same as the school nurse's office. School nurses and SBHCs work together, and school nurses often refer students to SBHCs because they can treat and resolve student health problems. All SBHC services are confidential. Parents must sign a Parent Permission Form for students to receive benefits. SBHCs can also bill Medicaid, HUSKY A & B, and private commercial health insurance plans for services provided to students covered by these health plans.

SBHC's Mapping Link

Where are all of the School-Based Health Centers located?

School-Based Health Center locations and more Link

Advocacy and Legislative Priorities

CASBHC Legislative Priorities 2025

Advocacy Center

Some of the major legislative and advocacy wins for CASBHC in 2026,  both direct policy successes and broader systems-level progress for Connecticut school-based health centers (SBHCs):

  • Expansion of statewide attention and support for SBHCs as critical access points for youth medical, behavioral health, and dental care. CASBHC continued advocating for SBHC expansion funding, rural access, and sustainable reimbursement models.
    • UCFS received critical funding for several of their SBHCs.
  • Continued implementation and support of ARPA-funded SBHC expansion efforts across Connecticut communities, helping expand access to mental health, primary care, dental, and telehealth services for students.
    • Child and Family Agency of SECT and Integrated Health Services received funding to support the SBHCs that had previously received APRA funding.
  • Advancement of legislation tied to student sports physicals and cardiac screening expectations for APRNs and PAs in school-based settings. CASBHC publicly supported legislation requiring standardized screening tools in SBHCs and has since been actively working on provider education and implementation support.
  • Increased recognition of the role of APRNs and PAs within SBHCs, especially as Connecticut continues expanding healthcare workforce initiatives and school-linked care delivery models.
  • Stronger positioning of SBHCs within statewide behavioral health discussions, particularly around youth mental health access, crisis intervention, care coordination, and prevention services.
  • Continued advocacy for Medicaid modernization priorities, including group billing improvements and dental unbundling for SBHC and mobile dental programs. These will remain central CASBHC administrative priorities in 2027.
  • Elevated statewide visibility for school-based healthcare through conferences, legislative testimony, cross-sector partnerships, and education initiatives involving clinicians, legislators, educators, and state agencies.

 

 

CT Behavioral Health Resources

Where are our BH partners located and how can you connect?

CT-BH-Resource-ListEdits

Sharing Our Stories Booklet

Real students share their stories about the services they received in their school-based health centers. We produced this beautiful publication in partnership with the 2013 Connecticut Health Leadership Fellows. Learn more about the services school-based health centers provide and students' perspectives.