Rhode Island
Newport Hospital earns top ranking – What’s Up Newp
Newport Hospital was among several hospitals in Rhode Island that achieved an A rating from the hospital watchdog group Leapfrog in its fall ratings. Three hospitals – Roger Williams Medical Center, Kent, and South County were awarded C or below, a pattern of declining ratings over the last few years.
Additionally, Women and Infants Hospital declined to participate in Leapfrog’s survey, according to Leapfrog. The group surveys more than 2,000 hospitals nationwide twice a year.
Both Fatima and Roger Williams are owned by California-based Prospect Medical Holdings, which filed for bankruptcy several months ago. There have been efforts to sell the hospitals while maintaining both of them open.
Women and Infants is part of the Care New England Group, which also includes Kent Hospital, whose safety rating has steadily declined over the last few years.
Leapfrog, which conducted the survey, is a well-respected hospital watchdog group that describes itself as “the nation’s gold standard in evaluating hospital performance on national measures of safety, quality, and efficiency in both inpatient and outpatient areas.”
Hospital safety is critical, with surveys suggesting that as many as 440,000 patients die annually because of hospital safety errors. Studies suggest that preventable medical errors are the third leading cause of death in America.
Leapfrog assigns rankings, A to F, based on issues involving infections, surgical problems, safety concerns, and practices to prevent errors. Within each of these areas are also several measures.
Earning A ratings for the fall of 2025 were Newport, Miriam, Rhode Island, and Westerly Hospitals. Newport, Miria,m and Rhode Island are part of Brown University Health (formerly Lifespan), while Westerly is part of the Yale/New Haven group. Landmark Hospital in Woonsocket received a B rating; Kent, Fatima and South received C ratings; and Roger Williams Medical Center received a D rating.
Several trends were also evident. Newport and Miriam Hospitals have been trending up, scoring B in the spring and fall of 2022, but in 2023 reaching an A rating, and remaining there. Rhode Island fell to a C in the fall of 2023, rising to B in both surveys in 2024, and in the two reports in 2025 have achieved an A rating.
Landmark has been consistently A-rated since 2022, with the only exception being a B in one of the reports in 2024. Westerly has been rising, from a C in the spring of 2022 to an A in 2025. Fatima has been C-rated with only one exception, a B in the fall of 2022. Roger Williams also consistently received a C until this fall, when its ranking dropped to D.
South County had ranged between A and B, falling to C this fall.
For those hospitals that trended lower, a significant problem appears to be effective leadership to help prevent errors. “Effective leadership to prevent errors: Errors are much more common if hospital leaders don’t make patient safety a priority. Leaders must make sure that all hospital staff know what they need to work on and that they are held accountable for improvements.”
South County, which is Rhode Island’s only independent hospital, experienced a disruption among physicians several months ago, in a rift with the administration that apparently has yet to heal.
Leadership, or lack of leadership, was also noted for other hospitals not performing well.
Meanwhile, other issues remain: healthcare – the lack of primary care physicians (nationwide); the study to determine whether to build a second medical school at the University of Rhode Island; and the threatened closure of Roger Williams and Fatima Hospitals.
Rhode Island
RI Lottery Powerball, Numbers Midday winning numbers for May 9, 2026
The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 9, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from May 9 drawing
15-41-46-47-56, Powerball: 22, Power Play: 2
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Numbers numbers from May 9 drawing
Midday: 0-8-9-5
Evening: 0-9-4-7
Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Wild Money numbers from May 9 drawing
08-13-24-27-34, Extra: 32
Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from May 9 drawing
08-11-17-29-49, Bonus: 02
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
- Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
- Winners of the Millionaire for Life top prize of $1,000,000 a year for life and second prize of $100,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.
When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. ET daily.
- Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
- Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
- Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Rhode Island
Proposed tax hike would hurt small businesses and our communities | Opinion
RI House speaker answers why RI won’t ‘pause’ millionaires tax push
House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi fielded a question on whether lawmakers might pause efforts to pass a millionaires tax.
Rhode Island is built on the strength of small, family-owned businesses. They are the backbone of our economy, the employers of our neighbors, and the reason our communities have character and opportunity. I know this not just as a legislator, but as someone who works every day in a family business alongside the people I care about most. That’s why I am concerned about the impact of the proposed “millionaires tax” on businesses and our communities.
While it may sound like a measure aimed at a narrow group of high earners, the reality is far different. Many family-owned businesses – especially those structured as pass-through entities – report their business income on personal tax returns. That means this tax doesn’t just target “millionaires” in the traditional sense; it directly impacts small and mid-sized businesses that reinvest their earnings into payroll, equipment, expansion and employee benefits.
In my case, our family business is a private ambulance service. Every day, we are responsible for delivering critical care to Rhode Islanders, particularly seniors and our most medically fragile neighbors. That responsibility comes with significant costs. Ambulances, lifesaving medical equipment, and the technology needed to support our crews are expensive, and they must be maintained and updated regularly to meet the highest standards of care.
Tax increases like this directly impact our ability to make those investments. These are not abstract tradeoffs – they have real consequences for the level of care we can provide. For businesses like mine, margins matter. Every dollar that goes out the door in taxes is a dollar that can’t be used to hire another worker, increase wages, buy new equipment or sponsor the local Little League team. These are real decisions that affect real people.
Supporters of this proposal often frame it as a fairness issue. But fairness should also mean recognizing the role that employers play in creating opportunity. When government makes it more expensive to operate a business in Rhode Island, we risk pushing investment – and jobs – elsewhere. Policies like this don’t exist in a vacuum; they shape decisions about where businesses grow and where families choose to put down roots.
We don’t have to guess what would happen if we raised taxes here – we can just look to Massachusetts. They passed a millionaires tax and the latest data shows a steady stream of high earners leaving for lower-tax states like New Hampshire and, you guessed it, Rhode Island. We could take advantage of Massachusetts’ mistake and build on the momentum we have built in recent years. We’ve seen the benefits of thoughtful policy decisions that encourage investment and support job creation and tax revenues are up. But progress is fragile. Policies like the millionaires tax risk undoing that work by sending the message that success will be penalized rather than encouraged.
As both a business owner and a legislator, I believe strongly that we can – and must – strike a better balance.
We can support public services, invest in our communities, and maintain fiscal responsibility without resorting to policies that put our local businesses at a disadvantage. We can grow our economy by creating an environment where businesses want to stay, expand and hire.
Let’s focus on solutions that strengthen our economy, support our workforce, and ensure that family-owned businesses like mine and so many others across our state continue to thrive.
Rhode Island’s future depends on it.
Jacquelyn Baginski is a state representative from Cranston.
Rhode Island
RI Lottery Mega Millions, Numbers Midday winning numbers for May 8, 2026
The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 8, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from May 8 drawing
37-47-49-51-58, Mega Ball: 16
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Numbers numbers from May 8 drawing
Midday: 9-8-9-7
Evening: 7-9-8-9
Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Wild Money numbers from May 8 drawing
10-13-15-16-30, Extra: 09
Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from May 8 drawing
14-16-21-43-51, Bonus: 03
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
- Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
- Winners of the Millionaire for Life top prize of $1,000,000 a year for life and second prize of $100,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.
When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. ET daily.
- Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
- Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
- Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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