PROVIDENCE, RI — The Miriam Hospital in Providence will undergo a renovation project, which will upgrade its emergency department and inpatient units, hospital officials said Monday.

The upgrades were approved with a certificate of need from the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) based on a recommendation from RIDOH’s Health Services Council, a spokesperson for Brown University Health, which owns the hospital, said.

“Receiving this approval marks a crucial step forward in our steadfast commitment to delivering exceptional patient care and advancing medical excellence,” Miriam Hospital President Maria Ducharme said. “Our current building, now over 100 years old, can no longer adequately support the demands of modern patient care. In addition, our emergency department is a fragmented space that no longer supports efficient patient flow and the highest levels of communication we strive to deliver to those who have come to rely on us for their care. These much-needed renovations will create a safe, comfortable, environment that prioritizes the health and well-being of our community.”

Work is scheduled to begin spring 2025 and will be carried out in three phases throughout the next three years. Hospital officials said this phased approach is designed to minimize disruptions to ongoing patient care and the surrounding communities.

The first phase will involve demolishing the hospital campus’s oldest building to create space for a new emergency department and private patient rooms. The renovation project has an estimated cost of $125 million for completion, the majority which will be funded through a centennial capital fundraising campaign.

“As a cornerstone of our community, the Miriam Hospital has always been committed to delivering exceptional care,” Brown University Health President John Fernandez said. “This investment reflects Brown University Health’s unwavering dedication to modernizing our facilities, advancing healthcare and improving outcomes for everyone we serve.”

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RHODE ISLAND — Minimum wage workers in Rhode Island are among about 9.2 million nationwide who will get a pay bump in 2025.

The pay raises taking effect Jan. 1 will increase worker pay by about $5.7 billion in the 21 states that are boosting the minimum wage, according to an analysis from the Economic Policy Institute, a nonprofit think tank that analyzes the economic effect of policies on primarily low- and middle-income families.

In Rhode Island, the minimum wage will increase in 2025 to $15 an hour, up from $14 an hour in 2024. The tipped minimum wage stayed the same at $3.89 an hour.

The raises will increase 2025 pay for minimum wage workers in Rhode Island by about $46.5 million — or an average of $767 a year.

About 13.6 percent of the workforce and about 65,100 Rhode Island residents are directly or indirectly affected by the minimum wage hikes. About 33,300 children — 16.1 percent of all children in Rhode Island — live in households where a minimum wage worker lives.

Nationwide, more than a quarter (25.7 percent) of workers getting a minimum wage pay increase are parents, and more than 5.8 million children live in households where an individual will receive a minimum wage hike, the analysis said.

One in five (20.4 percent) of affected workers are in families with incomes below the poverty line, and nearly half (48.5 percent) have family incomes below twice the poverty line.

Teenagers are often disproportionately likely to become minimum wage workers, the analysis said, but about 88 percent of those getting raises are adults. Among them, about half are full-time workers.

Of all adult workers getting a minimum wage bump in 2025, 41.4 percent have completed at least some education beyond a high school degree.

In addition to Rhode Island, others among the 21 raising the minimum wage in 2025 are Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, South Dakota, Virginia, Vermont and Washington.

In addition, about 48 cities and counties, mostly in California, Colorado and Washington, are raising wages above their state minimum wage floors.

Most minimum wage hikes taking effect Jan. 1 are a result of state laws that tie minimum wage increases to inflation. The raises are automatic in 13 of the states and effect about 56.2 percent of workers getting raises.

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With it being almost a week since the West Virginia bowl game, several former Mountaineers who have entered the portal are starting to find new opportunities elsewhere. Over the weekend, tight end Will Dixon announced his commitment to Rhode Island.

Dixon reclassified to be a part of West Virginia’s 2022 signing class but was buried on the depth chart behind Kole Taylor, Treylan Davis, and others. Last offseason was a critical one for him as the Mountaineer coaching staff was searching for a third tight end. Instead of that guy being Dixon, it was true freshman Jack Sammarco. Dixon appeared in seven games during his time in the Old Gold and Blue, primarily serving on the special teams unit.

Coming out of high school, he chose West Virginia over offers from Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, James Madison, Liberty, Marshall, Temple, and a few others.

He will have one year of eligibility remaining.

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