Delaware
RISE salutes Rep. Paul Baumbach for bills on Medicare privatization for Delaware retirees
3-minute read
A special heartfelt thank you to state Rep. Paul Baumbach from all retirees and RISE members for HB 281 and HB 282. Just look at all those sponsors he has gotten onboard and more have signed on since he prefiled:
As far back as mid-August in 2022, when Councilwoman Lisa Diller and I decided to found RISE Delaware, we realized that it would take a massive, organized effort on everyone’s part to stop the state of Delaware from imposing its Medicare Advantage plan on its current and future retirees. Joined by Connie Merlet we decided to formally create and incorporate the entity “Retirees Investing in Social Equity” known as RISE Delaware.
We agreed that retirees must organize and force a change in the Carney administration’s plan to privatize Medicare. The state plan being proposed at that time would impede the health care access for over 28,000 state pensioners including state of Delaware retirees and retired Delaware teachers, as well as college and university faculty covered through the state of Delaware’s health benefits — including police and firefighters and other first responders. Please refer to my guest post of Aug. 18, 2022 in the Delaware State News for more details.
RISE Delaware organized its first rally on Oct. 4, 2022 at the Lewis Redding Building in Wilmington and despite a driving rainstorm more than 50 people showed up to protest the proposal to take away their promised benefits. We scheduled another rally on Oct. 12, 2022 in Dover at Legislative Hall and more than 150 people attended to support and vocalize their opposition to the Medicare privatization plan that the administration was threatening them with. RISE hosted numerous other rallies and engagement sessions with legislators. On June 13, 2023, we held a rally in Dover at Legislative Hall with well more than 150 people in attendance. The Delaware State News did an excellent job of covering these rallies and an important point was raised. As a RISE cofounder and rally organizer I was obligated to remind those in attendance not to rely on ongoing litigation for their benefits to be honored, instead insisting that retirees reach out to their elected officials to take legislative action. This is what I said:
“The battle is not going to be won solely by the courts. It’s going to be by laws changing towards taking action. So, as much as we need to fight in the courts to preserve, at least temporarily, our rights, that is not where the war is going to be won.”
During 2023, RISE Delaware held several other rallies against Medicare Advantage throughout the state. The rallies and social media efforts have helped the organization develop a network of retirees who have generously supported the legal efforts of RISE.
Despite the success of the lawsuit granting our organization a temporary stay of the Medicare Advantage mandate, we. At RISE, had always been aware that a permanent solution to stopping this privatization effort would have to come via legislators passing laws that would guarantee fairness and health care access for all current retirees and spouses and for future retirees.
More perspective: Enough is enough: Delaware retirees deserve health benefits they were promised
Now I’d like to recognize and thank a special legislator, Baumbach, who, as the vice chair of the Retiree Healthcare Benefits Advisory Subcommittee, also realized that a permanent solution would have to be made in law. Baumbach took legislation that state Rep. William Carson Jr. and I had worked on together and crafted into a more formidable and doable group of bills that would benefit all retirees current and future. These bills are HB 281 and HB 282. I cannot overestimate the debt of gratitude all of us retirees owe to Baumbach but be assured that now is the time for all RISE members, activists, and supporters to email, hard-mail and call their representatives and senators and tell them to support and vote for these two very important pieces of legislation.
John Kowalko is a retired state representative who represented the 25th district and is a cofounder of RISE.
Residents want harsher penalties for the Delaware City Refinery
More than 86,000 people live within a 5-mile radius of the refinery, more than half of whom are people of color, and 20% live in low-income households, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency data.
George X has lived 2 miles from the refinery for decades, and is worried about health concerns reported by his neighbors over the years.
“We talked about a lot of things this evening, but they didn’t talk about when they’re going to stop the pollution,” he said. “We already know we’re being poisoned. We just want to know when you’re gonna stop.”
Residents and environmentalists for years have urged DNREC to direct harsher penalties on the refinery.
The refinery has historically been one of the region’s top polluters — releasing more than 4.6 million pounds of pollutants in 2023, according to EPA data.
The facility also has a history of violations, including three in just the past year.
In 2019, the refinery paid DNREC $950,000 to resolve a backlog of air quality violations. That same year, a fire that led to mechanical failures caused the emission of more than 842 pounds of hydrocarbons, 592 pounds of sulfur dioxide, 438 pounds of carbon monoxide, 80 pounds of nitrogen oxides and 4,300 pounds of sulfur dioxide, as well as an additional 4,300 pounds of sulfur dioxide from flaring.
According to the National Emissions Inventory, the refinery released more than 430,000 pounds of sulfur dioxide in 2020.
However, a spokesperson for the refinery said that since PBF acquired the facility from Valero Energy in 2010, there has been about an 83% reduction in sulfur dioxide emissions since 2022 compared to the last three years that Valero owned and operated it.
On Thursday, General Manager Michael Capone said he was regretful about the mechanical failure and aftermath, and promised to better communicate with the public in the future.
“We are working this thing around the clock to make sure that we get the unit complete, the work complete and the unit back online as quickly as possible,” he said.
“I want to assure all of the residents that we take each and every incident seriously. We do a detailed root cause … analysis to understand what that issue was and then we work to understand how to apply those learnings.”
Claiming lottery in Delaware
18 states have laws that allow national lottery prize jackpot winners to remain anonymous, but is Delaware among them?
The Delaware Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Thursday, June 5, 2025 results for each game:
Winning Play 3 numbers from June 5 drawing
Day: 2-4-5
Night: 3-9-7
Check Play 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Play 4 numbers from June 5 drawing
Day: 6-1-2-4
Night: 5-2-1-8
Check Play 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Multi-Win Lotto numbers from June 5 drawing
01-04-09-21-22-35
Check Multi-Win Lotto payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from June 5 drawing
01-14-19-28-41, Lucky Ball: 07
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Play 5 numbers from June 5 drawing
Day: 7-8-6-8-1
Night: 1-6-6-1-1
Check Play 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
- Sign the Ticket: Establish legal ownership by signing the back of your ticket with an ink pen.
- Prizes up to $599: Claim at any Delaware Lottery Retailer, in person at the Delaware Lottery Office, or mail your signed ticket and claim form; print your name/address on the ticket’s back and keep a copy/photo for records. By mail, send original tickets and documentation to: Delaware Lottery, 1575 McKee Road, Suite 102, Dover, DE 19904.
- Prizes up to $2,500: Claim in person at Delaware Lottery Retailer Claim Centers throughout Kent, Sussex and New Castle Counties.
- Prizes of $5,001 or more: Claim in person at the Delaware Lottery Office (business days 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.) with a photo ID and Social Security card.
- For all prize claims, directions to the Delaware Lottery Office are available online or via mapquest.com for a map.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Delaware Lottery.
Can I claim a jackpot prize anonymously in Delaware?
Fortunately for First State residents, the Delaware Lottery allows winners remain anonymous. Unlike many other states that require a prize be over a certain jackpot, Delawareans can remain anonymous no matter how much, or how little, they win.
How long do I have to claim my prize in Delaware?
Tickets are valid for up to one year past the drawing date for drawing game prizes or within one year of the announced end of sales for Instant Games, according to delottery.com.
When are the Delaware Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. on Tuesday and Friday.
- Play 3, 4: Daily at 1:58 p.m. and 7:57 p.m., except Sunday afternoon.
- Multi-Win Lotto: 7:57 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: Daily at 10:38 p.m.
- Lotto America: 11:00 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday
Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Delaware Online digital operations manager. You can send feedback using this form.
This spring, her students created puppets tied to their English-language arts unit on global water issues.
“The current unit for ELA is to read about problems related to water around the world. They learned about problems with people not having enough water, problems with people not being able to get to water and having to walk really far, and then also water pollution,” she said. “And we focus mainly on water pollution … because in Wilmington, pollution, like on the streets, is a problem and it is something that the students can relate to.”
The curriculum encouraged students to create a video public service announcement — but Salisbury saw an opportunity to take it further.
“We decided that the video itself is already sort of adding a little artistic element, but creating the puppet as well will add sort of another aspect to it,” she said. “We sort of brainstormed all these different questions that we might ask a scientist or someone who lives by water, or even if we could talk to an animal that lives in the water, what could we ask them about water pollution and its effects?”
Through this approach, students brought to life characters ranging from scientists to river otters affected by pollution. As they brainstormed, designed and sewed their puppets, they merged science, language and art into one unified project.
The impact was especially noticeable with students who arrived midyear.
“Even like this year, I had two students come sort of in the middle of fall … There’s one in particular, she really blossomed into being very artistic,” Salisbury said. “She’s made a ton of growth in reading this year, and writing as well, which is super exciting. And I remember right before winter break she even said to me … ‘Thank you so much for all that you’ve taught me. Like, my old school… I didn’t learn like this. I didn’t understand anything.’”
Salisbury believes immersing into the arts gives students more control over their learning — especially during a season that can be overwhelming.
“Opening myself up to adding arts in … helps to make things seem a little less serious and … adds a little more fun and joy into what we’re doing,” she added.
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