When state lawmakers were considering adopting a public health insurance plan for Connecticut residents and businesses last year, Cigna Corp. CEO David Cordani reportedly threatened to uproot his Bloomfield-based health insurer and relocate it elsewhere.
The legislation died that same day.
Cigna denied any threat was made, but the episode still underscored the power health insurers have in Connecticut, where they still remain one of the region’s largest employers. Cordani oversees 4,700 employees in Connecticut and following that reported flare up, his company has reaffirmed its commitment to Bloomfield, kicking off a $90-million-plus campus renovation. In 2011, he was also able to negotiate a $50-million economic-incentives package from the Malloy administration in exchange for moving the company’s corporate headquarters to Bloomfield and increasing the company’s employment in the state to more than 4,000.
More broadly, Cordani is a national leader when it comes to talks about healthcare reform, having met face to face with President Barack Obama to discuss public health insurance exchanges.
Mark Boxer is Cigna’s executive vice president and chief information officer and one of the most active corporate C-suite executives locally. He’s a member of the UConn board of trustees and serves on the board of the Connecticut Children’s Law Center. Just as important, he’s been part of several convoys that convinced two major tech firms — Infosys and GalaxE.Solutions — to open major operations in downtown Hartford.