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Dr. Jerome Larkin is one step closer to leading R.I. Department of Health • Rhode Island Current

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Dr. Jerome Larkin is one step closer to leading R.I. Department of Health • Rhode Island Current


After a small clinic’s worth of physicians showed up to testify in support of Gov. Dan McKee’s choice for the next director of the Rhode Island Department of Health, the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services affirmed its support for Dr. Jerome “Jerry” Larkin at a hearing Thursday.

The committee voted 5-1 in favor of Larkin’s nomination, with Sen. Elaine Morgan, a Hopkinton Republican, serving the only nay vote. 

Greg Paré, spokesperson for the Rhode Island Senate, said in an email Thursday that Larkin’s appointment will hit the Senate floor on Tuesday, May 19.

The clinicians, many of them colleagues and former protégés of Larkin, came to say nice things about the doctor who serves as medical director of inpatient infectious diseases consultation services at Rhode Island Hospital and teaches clinical medicine as a professor at Brown University. The committee’s mailbox had also been stuffed with written testimonies.    

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“We got many, many letters,” said Sen. Joshua Miller, who chairs the committee. “I don’t remember seeing a letter that was not in support.”

But the most memorable affirmation may have been from Dr. Sabina Holland, medical director of the pediatric HIV clinic at Hasbro Children’s Hospital. 

“The highest compliment that a pediatrician can give another pediatrician is to entrust them with the care of their children,” Holland said. “He could have my children.” 

The crowd laughed. Chair Miller offered a playful retort. 

“He can’t have my children,” Miller said.

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Jokes aside, Larkin’s competency with children was underlined in several testimonies — including those from members of the Tiverton School Committee, which Larkin has chaired since 2017. Larkin has served on the school committee since 2012 and was most recently reelected in 2020 with 31.1% of the vote.   

The afternoon’s first two testimonies came from school committee members, including Deborah Pallasch.

“I have known Dr. Larkin since he became involved in the anarchy that can be Tiveron politics,” Pallasch said. “In the middle of COVID, as the chair of our school committee — as you can imagine, quite a scary time for us, quite a scary time for our parents, quite a scary time for our children — he led us as a community through that so deftly and so patiently and so respectfully.”

Larkin, in his own words to the Senate, emphasized the at-time martial nature of municipal school politics. “As chair for the last seven years, I am the veteran of 12 hardball budget seasons — some of them scorched earth, some of them merely trench warfare,” Larkin said. “I believe if you can understand the budget of a small-to-medium-sized school district, you have a better-than-even chance of understanding the budget of the Pentagon.”

“The Pentagon might actually be easier, as it seems to be able to spend money unbudgeted, freely, without any apparent consequence.”

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Priorities include stabilizing hospitals and nursing homes

The consistency of Larkin’s school board role contrasts the revolving door at the health department, a fixture of the McKee administration. The last permanent director, Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott, worked under Gina Raimondo’s administration and led the department during the height of the COVID pandemic. Alexander-Scott was reappointed for another five years in 2020, but vacated the position in January 2022, less than a year into McKee’s governorship. 

That vacuum has been plugged by three interim directors since then: Dr. Jim McDonald, Dr. Utpala Bandy, and most recently Dr. Staci Fischer, who took over as acting director when Bandy retired on March 31. Statewide health directors are rare birds nationally, and regional directors are common in larger states. The compensation for such an encompassing job has been criticized for the turnover, although McKee recently and successfully raised the base salary to $250,000 

Speaking to reporters, Larkin said that, if confirmed by the full Senate, his priorities would likely include the stabilization of hospitals and nursing homes, as well as responding to the opioid overdose crisis.

“But I’m still on the outside looking in,” Larkin said. 

Larkin was so far outside, in fact, that he was unsure how to assess the time demands of his possible new job. Would he continue serving on the school committee?

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“I haven’t made a decision,” Larkin told a reporter. “Certainly, you know, the Department of Health is a full-time job but so is being a doctor.”

We got many, many letters. I don’t remember seeing a letter that was not in support.

– Sen. Joshua Miller, a Cranston Democrat who chairs the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services

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Judging by the afternoon’s testimonies, Larkin is a good clinician. His 1993 medical degree is from Robert Wood Johnson Medical School at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, and his research specialty is tick-related illnesses and Lyme disease in children and pregnant women.

Dr. Michael Koster pointed out Larkin’s talents as a “med-peds” physician, or someone who “understands pediatric issues as much as he understands adult medical issues.”

“You don’t get a showing of physicians like this,” Koster said, referring to the turnout for the hearing. “You have to earn it. It’s not something you can buy.”

While the public offered no opposition, the senate committee did have a few questions. Miller pointed out the statute that outlines the health director’s qualifications — a prescription which includes “a minimum of five (5) years full time experience in health administration.” Miller was curious how that requirement fit into Larkin’s experience.

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“I think it depends,” Larkin began. “So, if you look at how much time do I spend seeing patients — so, everything I do is subsumed under the title of the director of infectious disease consults service. So in many regards, my clinical work is an administrative responsibility. I have to know how those services work.”

Larkin estimated that administrative duties probably comprise half his time currently. 

Sen. Linda Ujifusa, a Portsmouth Democrat, asked Larkin about the state’s shortage of primary care doctors as well as reimbursement rates. Could any initiatives from the health department help shape a more positive environment for Rhode Island’s doctors?

Larkin replied that neighboring Massachusetts and Connecticut are well known to have superior reimbursement rates, but that “rectifying that ultimately is actually a federal issue.”

Dr. Jerome Larkin has served as chairman of the Tiverton School Committee for the past seven years. After a State House confirmation hearing on his nomination to be director of the Rhode Island Department of Health on Thursday, May 16, 2024, Larkin said he was still undecided if would continue to serve on the school committee or seek re-election if he was appointed. (Alexander Castro/Rhode island Current)

“Would you mask our kids again?”

Morgan asked Larkin about the state’s handling of the pandemic. Larkin suggested looking at a map, and that Rhode Island ultimately “dodged a bullet” given the severity of the pandemic in nearby Massachusetts and New York. 

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Morgan then narrowed her focus. “Closing down the state: Would you do that again?” she asked.

“Do I think the decision was right to shut down in March of 2020 at that time? Yes,” Larkin said.  “Could we have reopened faster? Probably. There was certainly a loss in school districts, and there’s certainly an economic impact on this. So that’s my sort of armchair general retrospective perspective on it.”

“Would you mask our kids again?” Morgan continued.

“Yes. Yes,” Larkin said, and pointed to the measure as effective in reducing transmission, allowing kids to get back in school sooner.

At 4 p.m., bells started ringing.

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“It’s not a fire alarm,” Sen. Pam Lauria said. “It’s just the bells for the Senate.”

Miller used the literal sounding of the alarm as a backdrop for one more comment.

“And with that bell from the Senate, I just would like to ask you to be aware of a couple of issues that we have discussed in committee this session,” Miller said, and pointed to recent discussions involving scope of practice. Should committees in the General Assembly be tasked with regulating scopes of practice, or should that be left entirely to medical boards and the health department?

But rather than discuss “going down a very slippery slope of having scope of practice legislated,” Miller filed the question away for another day, and the motion for a vote on Larkin’s advancement began. Sen. Alana DiMario seconded the motion. Only Morgan voted no.  

Larkin’s own words to the committee were punctuated with the occasional cough.

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“Excuse my voice. My allergies decided to start today,” Larkin said after he sat down in front of the mic, following odes from his colleagues. “Yeah, I guess that was the easy part. It’s the fondest wish of every Irishman to attend their own wake, and I feel like that’s what I’ve been doing this afternoon.”

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Rhode Island

Neil Steinberg stepping down as chair of RI Life Science Hub. What we know.

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Neil Steinberg stepping down as chair of RI Life Science Hub. What we know.


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PROVIDENCE – Neil Steinberg is stepping down as the chairman of the board of the Rhode Island Life Science Hub, a role he assumed in October 2023 after he retired from the Rhode Island Foundation five months prior.

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In a three-page resignation letter dated July 15, Steinberg wrote that he wants to spend time with his family and travel as part of his retirement, along with working on “other key” priorities in the state including public education, health care and housing.

“Given the SUBSTANTIAL time I have invested in the past few years, and the solid foundation now established, I am willing to make this resignation effective on a day of your choosing, but not later than September 30, 2025,” he wrote to Gov. Dan McKee.

Steinberg was volunteering his time on the board.

The Life Science Hub was initially funded with $45 million from the state. Its president and CEO is Mark Turco.

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What has the RI Life Science Hub been doing?

Among the other achievements is this last legislative session when the hub secured changes to its enabling statute, the organization convened a 500-person summit and a $10-million agreement to establish Ocean State Labs, an incubator for life sciences, to be housed inside of the new seven-story building that also will house the new State Health Laboratory.

“Our progress confirms the potential for the life sciences to contribute to Rhode Island’s broader economic development strategy over the long term,” Steinberg wrote. “Realizing this potential will, of course, require additional financial resources beyond the ARPA funds which will fund the agency through 2026.”

Steinberg also lauded landing Organogenesis Holdings preparing to open a manufacturing facility for advanced biomedical supplies in Smithfield.

McKee: Steinberg established a ‘strong foundation’

In a written statement, McKee wrote that Steinberg helped establish a “strong foundation for this growing industry” and lauded his efforts to land Organogenesis in Rhode Island.

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“We’re excited to build on that momentum with Hub President Dr. Mark Turco and the board as we continue expanding opportunities in life sciences and strengthening Rhode Island’s economy,” McKee wrote.

Read Steinberg’s resignation letter below:

This story has been updated with new information



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Bodies of two missing Mass. brothers recovered near R.I. beach

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Bodies of two missing Mass. brothers recovered near R.I. beach


The bodies of two Massachusetts brothers who went missing near a Rhode Island beach Saturday night were recovered by authorities Sunday morning, according to police.

Stoughton residents Aldino and Valdir Centeio, 27 and 31, respectively, went missing following an incident near Warrens Point Beach in Little Compton on July 12, according to an email from Little Compton police. Little Compton Fire Rescue and a state emergency management department boat recovered their bodies around 11:15 a.m. the following day near where they were last scene.

The Rhode Island Medical Examiner’s Office has taken custody of the Centeios’ bodies, police said.

The initial distress call reported that a man had fallen from rocks along the shoreline into the water near the Warren’s Point Beach Club, The Boston Globe reported. Witnesses told police a second fisherman jumped into the water to try to rescue the first man, but both were swept away by the current.

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A third man also went into the water to try to help the first two men, but he had to be rescued, the Globe reported.

No further information has been released.

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Newport City Council fights to save hospital birthing center from closure – What’s Up Newp

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Newport City Council fights to save hospital birthing center from closure – What’s Up Newp


The Newport City Council will convene a special meeting Tuesday evening to consider a resolution advocating for the continued operation of the Noreen Stonor Drexel Birthing Center at Newport Hospital, as the facility faces potential closure due to budget constraints.

The meeting, scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, July 15, in the Council Chamber at City Hall, comes as Newport Hospital’s parent company, Brown Health, grapples with “substantial budget shortfalls” that are forcing consideration of cuts to programs and services across the system.

In his weekly newsletter to supporters Sunday, Councilor Xay Khamsyvoravong outlined the stakes facing the community, warning that closure of the birthing center would create “The Last Generation of Newporters” if expectant mothers are forced to travel off-island for delivery services.

“Newport Hospital is considering cuts to services and is specifically considering closing the Birthing Center, where the next generation of Newporters are delivered,” Khamsyvoravong wrote in the email titled “The Last Generation of Newporters?”

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The timing is critical, as Newport Hospital welcomes a new president on Monday who will immediately begin working on the hospital’s fall budget—with the birthing center’s fate “put squarely on his agenda.”

Economic and Safety Concerns

The proposed resolution outlines several concerns about closing the birthing center, including impacts on emergency services and the local economy. According to the document, expectant mothers typically make 2-4 impromptu trips to a delivery unit before giving birth, and without local services, they would likely overwhelm Newport Hospital’s already strained emergency room before being diverted elsewhere.

The resolution also warns that closure would increase demand on the city’s Fire and Rescue Department, whose ambulances would be “increasingly called upon to transport expectant mothers to off-island hospitals, potentially during time-sensitive and medically urgent situations.”

From an economic perspective, the resolution argues that poor access to healthcare would be “yet another reason young families with flexibility won’t move here,” further exacerbating Newport’s challenges with attracting and retaining families.

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Personal Stakes

Khamsyvoravong brought a personal perspective to the issue, sharing memories of accompanying his mother, pediatrician Dr. Linda Rexford, on weekend hospital visits throughout her nearly five-decade career. He noted the irony that he wasn’t born at Newport Hospital himself, but spent countless hours there as a child.

“I have forty-one years of being told the people we rely on most are valued the least,” Khamsyvoravong wrote, referencing the compensation challenges facing primary care providers in Rhode Island.

Call to Action

The councilor is urging community members to make their voices heard before Tuesday’s meeting. He specifically called on residents to contact Sarah Frost, Executive Vice President and Chief of Hospital Operations at Brown University Health, as well as members of the Hospital Foundation’s boards and major donors.

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“We need you to tell your story,” Khamsyvoravong wrote. “Newport Hospital and their parent, Brown Health, needs to hear it from you.”

The resolution, if passed, would be sent to Brown Health leadership, the President of Newport Hospital, the Governor of Rhode Island, the Rhode Island Department of Health, Newport County state legislators, the Rhode Island Congressional delegation, and the town councils of Jamestown, Middletown, and Portsmouth.

The special meeting begins at 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, July 15, at Newport City Hall, 43 Broadway. The resolution is sponsored by Councilors Xay Khamsyvoravong, Stephanie Smyth, Jeanne-Marie Napolitano, Ellen Pinnock, and David R. Carlin III.

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