Blog

I am thrilled at Congress’s passage of the historic health care reform bill last night.

As today’s New York Times editorial states, this is a beginning on health care reform—not the end. But what a momentous beginning! In the coming months, I will work with lawmakers and the health care community to ensure reform is implemented smoothly here in Rhode Island.

From...

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So often we focus on what’s not working in Rhode Island—and certainly the challenges we face are real. But I’d like to take a moment to celebrate what’s going right in downtown Providence at the moment.

If you’ve walked around downtown in the past few days, you’ve felt the palpable buzz. With the NCAA tournament in town for a few days, we have an opportunity to showcase what’s best and unique about Rhode Island and Providence—our great restaurants, cultural...

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One in five Rhode Islanders will be without health insurance at some point in 2010. And 140,000 are uninsured right now. That number is expected to grow, given our state’s unemployment situation and changing industrial patterns.

These are some of the troubling facts reported in a study, commissioned by the Rhode Island Foundation and myself, of Rhode Island’s uninsured that was presented last night as part of a series of talks I’m hosting on health care...

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Today I’m announcing legislation I’ve introduced to close the Lucas Group loophole that allowed $370,000 in payments to a company without a contract with the state—a move that angered many last summer, myself included.

To quickly refresh your memory, the Lucas Group, a Boston-based consulting firm, had been engaged in what was described as a voluntary agreement to provide guidance in the development of the Global Medicaid Waiver that was approved last January....

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I spent Monday afternoon at the White House as the guest of President Obama and the First at a celebration of International Women’s Day—not a bad way to spend a Monday.

In the company of current and future women leaders— everyone from Cabinet members to high school students—I had a moment to pause and reflect on how much has changed for women, how much we still have to accomplish, and how many women around the world continue to face serious oppression and...

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What a great Saturday I had this past weekend… a series of events that, looking back, really capture a day in the life of our fascinating state—from children’s programs to the arts to help for the homeless, with a dash of college hoops and economic development thrown in for good measure.

I started the day with a delegation of Southeast Asian community leaders in Providence to encourage participation in the 2010 Census.

I went from there to the Warwick...

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This morning I met with RI Business Group on Health to discuss what we can do in Rhode Island to address the urgent need for health care reform and cost containment.

This local discussion happens to coincide with President Obama’s health care summit today, when all eyes will be on Washington as he brings together Democratic and Republican leadership to hammer out a path to passage of federal health care reform.

I’m glad to see the president tackle...

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As part of my Buy Local RI initiative, this week I kicked off a month-long, statewide tour of small businesses focused on arts and culture—businesses that create entrepreneurial growth and jobs as well as boost the quality of our lives here in Rhode Island.

From small jewelry manufacturers, to on-stage performers, to high-end graphic designers and so many more, the small businesses of the arts and culture sector are a key component of the state’s economy.

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Over the last few days, I have been humbled by the support of many Rhode Islanders who have encouraged me to enter the race to succeed Congressman Kennedy representing Rhode Island’s first district in Washington. While it would be an honor to have the opportunity to be a member of congress, my place right now is here in Rhode Island.

As I declared last July, I will run for re-election as lieutenant governor. Rhode Islanders need an advocate - someone who...

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Health insurance commissioner Christopher Koller yesterday approved a 7 percent rate hike for Blue Cross Blue Shield direct-pay plans—a reduction of both the original 10.2 percent request and the 9.5 percent increase agreed to by the attorney general and Blue Cross last week.

While I am encouraged that the commissioner further lowered the rate hike to address affordability issues, the approved 7 percent hike will still be a tremendous financial burden for struggling Rhode Islanders. From my press release:

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