Rhode Island
R.I. legislative commission recommends medical school at URI, suggests $20m in ‘seed funding’ – The Boston Globe
“It’s clear that enabling Rhode Island students to more affordably enter the primary care field, and supporting them once they make that choice, is both feasible and necessary,” Lauria said.
URI President Marc Parlange, also the commission’s co-chairman, said the medical school would be a “natural and strategic extension” of URI’s work. “It would help address Rhode Island’s primary care shortage while strengthening our state’s economy,” he said in a statement.
Lauria said the commission is calling for the state to provide $20 million in “initial seed funding” for the medical school in the state budget for fiscal year 2027, and $22.5 million in annual state funding beginning in 2029, when the first class of students would arrive. The commission also recommended the General Assembly create “a dedicated, recurring budget line to support ongoing medical school planning, accreditation, and initial operational activities.”
In an October report, the Tripp Umbach consulting firm told the commission the school’s start-up costs would total $175 million, and the commission called for exploring federal grants, a direct state budget appropriation, and a statewide bond referendum.
The consultants projected the medical school would be financially stable by its third year of operation, with costs offset by tuition revenue, clinical partnerships, and research growth. And the consultants projected the school would end up generating $196 million in annual economic activity, support about 1,335 jobs, and contribute $4.5 million in annual state and local tax revenue.
During a Rhode Map Live event in June, some officials called the medical school proposal a distraction from addressing the immediate need to provide more financial support and to improve the shortage of primary care doctors.
“In terms of the problem we face today, that won’t fix it,” Attorney General Peter F. Neronha said at the time. “As the head of Anchor [Medical Associates] said to me when I talked to him, that’s like telling the patient that the inexperienced doctor will be with you in a decade.”
But Lauria said the Senate is pursing short-term, medium-term, and long-term solutions to the shortage of primary care doctors, and the medical school is a long-term solution.
In the short term, Lauria said legislators pushed to speed up a Medicaid rate review aimed at boosting reimbursements for primary care doctors. And she noted the Senate passed legislation prohibiting insurers from requiring prior authorization for medically necessary health care services.
Lauria, who is a primary care nurse practitioner, said Rhode Island is lagging behind other states in Medicaid reimbursement rates. For example, she said, she practices medicine in East Greenwich, but if she did so 23 miles away Massachusetts, she could make 20 percent to 30 percent more.
Senate President Valarie J. Lawson, an East Providence Democrat, noted if the Legislature doesn’t act now on a public medical school, it might be having the same conversation in a decade, she said.
Lawson said her own primary care doctor is retiring at the end of March. “We know that we need to recruit physicians here and we need to retain them,” she said.
The commission report acknowledged that a URI medical school would not solve the state’s primary care problem. “Educating more clinicians is necessary but not sufficient for increasing supply,” the report states.
Doctors tend to stay where they train, so Rhode Island must have a plan to produce more primary care doctors through a residency strategy that incentivizes training more primary care doctors and trains them in places such as community health centers, the report states. Appropriate payment for primary care, reduced administrative burdens for clinicians, and lower uninsured rates could also be considered.
The commission called for creating a Primary Care Commission “to ensure continued focus on achieving a primary care–oriented system of care.” The commission also called for the development of a scholarship program linked to a minimum five-year obligation to local primary care practice.
The commission voted 15-0 in favor of the report. Senator Thomas J. Paolino, a Lincoln Republican on the commission, said, “The importance of this issue cannot be understated. My colleagues and I continually hear from constituents frustrated by skyrocketing healthcare costs, severe workplace shortages, and especially limited access to primary care.”
The commission began its work in 2024 when then-Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio named 21 people to the panel. In February 2025, the Joint Committee on Legislative Services approved $150,000 for a feasibility study. Tripp Umbach made a presentation on its draft of the report in May.
Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at edward.fitzpatrick@globe.com. Follow him @FitzProv.
Connie Slick, right, chats with Deanne Wright at the Rhode Island Direct Primary Care booth Tuesday at the senior center’s “Aging in Place” resource fair under the pavilion at Fort Getty. Photos by Andrea von Hohenleiten
Annie Murphy, from left, Joe Colon and Lea Verta at the Alzheimer’s Association booth.
Florence Iwuc learns about the warning signs of a stroke.
Donna Mignella, right, talks to members of the Community Outreach and Support Team, Mary Meagher, from left, Becky Minus and Dave Pritchard.
Susan Conant, left, and Andrea Maroto.
Vincent Ng, Barbara Cunha and John Andrews at the AARP booth.
Rhode Island
More complaints against former RI private school coach accused of exploiting underage girl – The Boston Globe
The girl told the state police and Barrington police that Cassidy, who’d been her coach, became fixated on her since the summer of 2025 and won her trust. She told police that Cassidy had given her lingerie and alcohol and requested explicit photos of her under the guise of training her for a “secret section of the FBI” to help children who are sex trafficked.
The small private Christian school fired Cassidy after his arrest on June 1. State police said they expected to bring more charges and asked for other witnesses to come forward.
Since then, Barrington Police Chief Michael E. Correia said, four more students from Barrington Christian Academy and a young woman who encountered Cassidy at the Pawtucket YMCA have made complaints.
“All of their stories are clearly inappropriate behavior from a teacher-coach,” Correia said on Wednesday. “However, we don’t believe [the allegations] at this time amounts to a criminal offense.”
Correia declined to describe the specific accusations. The new reports have been referred to the State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, which is leading the investigation. State Police Major Kenneth Moriarty did not respond to questions on Wednesday.
A 19-year-old woman who attended Barrington Christian Academy in the 2020-2021 school year was the first to come forward. She spoke to Barrington police on June 3, shortly after the state police announced Cassidy’s arrest, and described “inappropriate behavior,” Correia said.
Then, a 12-year-old girl and 15-year-old girl, both of whom are student-athletes at the school, spoke with Barrington police on June 8. A mother brought her 12-year-old daughter, who is also a student, to speak with police on June 9.
A 23-year-old woman contacted the Barrington police on June 17 about Cassidy. She said she encountered him at the Pawtucket YMCA when she was about 14 years old, and she also complained about “inappropriate behavior,” Correia said.
Kate Messier, the vice president of development at the Pawtucket YMCA, confirmed on Wednesday that Cassidy was employed there until 2018. She did not comment on his role at the YMCA or answer questions about whether the organization had received any complaints about Cassidy at the time.
“Child protection is foundational to how the YMCA of Pawtucket operates, and we maintain extensive safeguards that are reviewed and reinforced on an ongoing basis,” Messier said in the statement. “Those safeguards include thorough staff screening and background checks, mandatory child abuse prevention training, program environments structured to maintain supervision and eliminate unsupervised one-on-one situations, and clear procedures for reporting any concern.”
The 14-year-old girl whose allegations led the state police to arrest Cassidy said that she learned that he had allowed juveniles from unstable homes live in his house in Pawtucket while he was working at the YMCA, according to court documents. The girl also told investigators that Cassidy had housed foreign exchange students associated with Barrington Christian Academy.
Correia said that the private school has been “very cooperative” with the Barrington police. The head of school, Michael Skazinski, did not respond to questions from the Globe on Wednesday.
Cassidy’s lawyer, Melissa Larsen, declined comment on Wednesday.
The state police have searched Cassidy’s home in Pawtucket, his pickup truck, and his office at the school, and have seized numerous electronic devices, including iPads, tablets, and thumb drives, according to court records. The affidavits accompanying the search warrants detailed the allegations that the 14-year-old girl made against Cassidy.
He had been coaching her in different sports at the school, and their families became close. She told the state police that she grew to trust Cassidy and would spend time with him and his family at their home. Then, she said, he began telling her stories about how he was special — and so was she.
She said Cassidy told her he was working for a “secret section of the FBI.” She said he claimed that he had “special DNA,” so the FBI and state troopers had him assist in raids to save children from being sex trafficked. She said that Cassidy told her that there were “off-worlders” or aliens that posed as humans on earth, and some of those children being sex trafficked were actually aliens.
She said that Cassidy assigned various “challenges” or “missions” to make her comfortable in uncomfortable situations, according to the affidavits.
“She was also advised to learn to get comfortable with wearing less clothing and ultimately nudity because it would be required later on for ‘missions,’” the affidavits said. “Cassidy claimed that aliens did not believe in the ‘construct of clothes.’”
She said Cassidy emailed her from his personal Gmail account, calling himself “Casper,” the affidavits said. She said he also claimed that two other girls were using his email to talk to her about the “special” training, and she was told to email with a person named “Kevin” on another email address who would talk to her about her feelings, the affidavits said.
She said she was instructed to take explicit photographs of herself and send them to his private email. She came to realize that all of the personas were actually Cassidy.
On May 28, the girl received an email from Cassidy’s personal Gmail account offering her three “flirt options,” all of which involved her taking off her clothes in front of him. She believed she needed to follow through; she told police that Cassidy said “bad things” could happen to her if she failed.
That night, her parents discovered what was going on, and they contacted the Barrington police, who called in the state police.
The State Police are continuing to investigate and ask anyone with information about Cassidy or potential victims to contact the task force at 401-921-1170, or the Barrington Police Department at 401-437-3935.
Amanda Milkovits can be reached at amanda.milkovits@globe.com. Follow her @AmandaMilkovits.
Another famous face is joining the cast of “Rubber Hut” filming throughout Rhode Island.
As we previously reported, Grace Van Patten is starring in the feature film debut for director Hannah Gray Organschi about the infamous “condom hut” business from the early 90s.
The short-lived Fotomat kiosk turned drive-thru condom store garnered local notoriety as well as national attention in 1992 and is now the subject of a movie with several A-list stars attached.
READ MORE: Michael Imperioli, Emmy Rossum Join RI ‘Condom Hut’ Film
Scenes were filmed for several days at a custom-made “condom hut” on West Shore Road in Warwick. On Thursday, June 11, Beach Avenue was closed down to shoot a parade scene. Now, film crews have moved to Meshanticut Valley Parkway in Cranston for scenes along a residential street.
Who Was Behind the Original Condom Hut?
The home is believed to represent the residence of Emanuella DelVecchio, the former flight attendant who had the brilliant idea to open a condom kiosk in response to the AIDS epidemic.
Instead of support, however, DelVecchio received the condemnation of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence and was plagued with vandalism before shuttering her business within a year.
READ MORE: New Bedford’s Gone But Not Forgotten Closed-Down Bars
Who Has Joined the ‘Condom Hut’ Movie Cast So Far
Photos of parade scenes for the film show Michael Imperioli portraying a priest in the movie and now Deadline has reported that stage actor, Will Harrison, is attached to the project as DelVecchio’s husband. Other actors’ specific roles remain unknown.
Filming is expected to continue in Rhode Island until the end of June with a theatrical release likely in 2027.
See the Stars Who Own Homes in Rhode Island
There are plenty of celebrities who once called Rhode Island home, but how many still do? Here’s the list of stars who own homes across the Ocean State.
Gallery Credit: Nancy Hall
20 Stars Who Hail From Rhode Island
Rhode Island may be the smallest state in the nation, but it has been home to many celebrities. Though some have moved here, filmed here or attended school here, only a handful were actually born here. These are those celebrities.
Gallery Credit: Nancy Hall
All The Famous Faces That Have Been to Taylor Swift’s Rhode Island Home
Here are all the celebrities we know have made an appearance at Holiday House over the years.
Gallery Credit: Nancy Hall
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