HARTFORD – U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) announced on Friday that Fitscript of New Haven is this month’s “Murphy’s Innovator of the Month.” Founded in 2012 by Charles O’Connell, a New Haven resident with Type 1 Diabetes, Fitscript is a digital health company dedicated to helping people control their diabetes through exercise, education, and technology. Fitscript operates a fitness and global broadcasting multi-media studio in New Haven’s Science Park neighborhood where clients can workout and receive exercise guidance based on real-time measurements of their glucose levels. 

Fitscript recently launched the GLUCOSEZONE app, which allows people to access live and on-demand diabetes-specific exercise videos, as well as advice from certified diabetes educators from their smart phones. Today, Fitscript employs 16 people with expertise in diabetes management, fitness, software engineering, wearable device integration, and live global multi-media broadcasting. To date, they have helped more than 550,000 people around the world lower their A1 C levels, lose weight, and control their diabetes.   

Charles O’Connell, Founder and CEO of Fitscript, said, “We are honored at Fitscript to be recognized by Senator Murphy as an innovative company, and are grateful for his bipartisan leadership supporting entrepreneurship, research and innovation across the country. To me, this is about economic opportunity. Simply put, as a person living with a pre-existing condition, I could not have started Fitscript without the Affordable Care Act. We are now employing 16 people with high paying professional jobs. While the ACA may have flaws that need to be addressed, in my opinion the only way economic development, innovation and job opportunity in this country is going to occur is by ensuring access to health care for all people." 

Murphy said, “Charles figured out a way to help people all over the world manage their diabetes and take charge of their health. His company has actually helped clients reduce the amount of medication they have to take. Charles’ story reminds us why the fight for health care in Congress right now is so important. Access to health insurance allowed him to pursue his dream as an entrepreneur. Fitscript is a model for innovation in health care, and I’m thrilled they call Connecticut home.” 

Murphy believes entrepreneurship and innovation are building blocks for a strong economy. In the U.S. Senate, he has introduced two bipartisan pieces of legislation to incentivize angel investors to put more money into startup companies – the Angel Tax Credit Act and the Helping Angels Lead Our Startups (HALOS) Act. Last month, Murphy’s HALOS Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives. Startup companies create an average of 2 million jobs each year.

Murphy is also focused on securing federal National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for Connecticut research institutions. Murphy recently helped secure over $4.8 billion for NIH over 10 years for new investments in cancer treatment and medical research, and celebrated a $2 billion increase in NIH federal investments for research institutions, such as those in Connecticut, that are working to develop new medical therapies, diagnostics, and preventative measures. Murphy also called on NIH to commit more resources to Connecticut’s leading research institutions, like Yale University. In 2015, Connecticut institutions received over $457.3 million in federal NIH grant funding for 1,100 projects.