James Michel leads Access Health CT, the state’s health insurance marketplace, at a time of mounting pressure on both individual and small-business coverage.
In July 2025, Access Health estimated that provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and other federal changes could cause up to 35% of its more than 150,000 customers to lose marketplace coverage by 2034, citing subsidy expirations and new eligibility rules.
Michel warned that the changes could raise costs and create new barriers to financial help for Connecticut residents.
At the same time, the state’s small-group health insurance market has eroded. Since 2022, carriers including ConnectiCare, Aetna, Cigna/Oscar Health and Harvard Pilgrim have exited the fully insured small-group business, leaving only Anthem and UnitedHealthcare in the market.
To help fill the void, Access Health this summer launched a new product, Access Health BusinessPlus, that offers small employers Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements, or ICHRAs, as an alternative. The program allows businesses to contribute pretax dollars toward employee premiums, with workers choosing from 22 individual market plans.
Michel, who became CEO in 2018 after serving in finance and operations roles at Access Health, has guided the exchange through major enrollment and policy shifts. A U.S. Army Reserve veteran, he holds an MBA from the University of Hartford’s Barney School of Business and a bachelor’s in accounting from Brooklyn College.