Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - November 13, 2020

HOT

Rogue Island 

One downtown bar and restaurant in Providence is taking advantage of Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo’s executive orders and social restrictions — by naming drinks after them.

This week, Raimondo announced 7 new restrictions in light of surging coronavirus numbers — and Rogue Island Local Kitchen & Bar in the Arcade unveiled the creative cocktail list.

“Just be nice & have a cocktail,” they write, of their offerings for their "socially distanced" brunch. 

Some examples:

Max of Ten: Triple 8 Cranberry, grapefruit juice, orange juice, champaign, cranberry bitters

500$ Fine: Triple 8 Orange, egg white, lemon, rhubarb bitters, pickled cranberry and peach

10PM Curfew: Yuul Baal Mezcal Espadin, Milagro Silver, lemon, local pumpkin, maple, roasted pumpkin seeds

See the Full List HERE

HOT

Brown University

Brown University has announced a new $20 million gift that the Ivy League institution says marks a major step toward the goal of providing full financial support to current and future generations of student veterans.

Brown announced the gift from Joseph P. Healey — a U.S. Army veteran, son of a Brown alumna, parent to two Brown students and co-founder of investment management firm HealthCor — which will create a permanent endowment for a scholarship for veterans. 

“A Brown degree is a ticket that opens doors for the rest of your life,” Healey said. “To give veterans who have served our country a chance to attend Brown — the way that Brown gave that chance to my mom, and the military gave a chance to me — was a unique opportunity to return an investment that was made in my mother and in me.”

The announcement comes one year after Brown University launched its plan to double the number of U.S. military veterans enrolled as undergraduates by 2024. 

About Gift and Support 

The gift will also establish another scholarship for students in Brown’s Resumed Undergraduate Education (RUE) program, which has welcomed many military veterans to campus over the last decade.

“As the University has expanded military partnerships and more veterans have pursued undergraduate degrees at Brown, we have pledged to expand support for these exceptional students,” said Brown University President Christina H. Paxson.

Read more HERE

HOT

One Legislator Trying to Actually Legislate 

Rhode Island State Representative William O’Brien (D-Dist. 54, North Providence) is calling on the House Oversight Committee to hold hearings regarding the executive orders issued by the governor during the COVID-19 pandemic.

O’Brien’s call comes after the House Republican Caucus recently announced they were introducing legislation to "ensure proper checks and balances on the Governor’s powers during a declared State of Emergency." 

On November 9, Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo issued her 91st supplemental emergency declaration. 

“As we enter another month of this public health crisis, it is important that the House Oversight Committee upholds its constitutional duty to provide oversight of the governor’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said O’Brien. 

Read more HERE

HOT

Joe Biden

President-elect Joe Biden has named a new coronavirus the task force which will be led by three co-chairs: former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler, and Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith from Yale University.

Other members of the group include:

Luciana Borio: Borio previously served as Director for Medical and Biodefense Preparedness at the National Security Council (2017-2019), where she was a member of the NSC’s pandemic response team.

Rick Bright: a vaccine expert and a top Department of Health and Human Services position who was a whistleblower on the Trump administration.

Eric Goosby: an infectious diseases expert who previously served in the Obama and Clinton administrations. Currently serving as the UN Special Envoy on Tuberculosis.

Ezekiel Emanuel: an oncologist and adviser to Biden, He is the current Vice Provost for Global Initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania and chair of the Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy

Michael Osterholm: director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.

Atul Gawande: He is a surgeon at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and a professor at Harvard Medical School and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. He is the founder and chair of Ariadne Labs, a joint center for health systems innovation, and of Lifebox, a nonprofit organization making surgery safer globally. He is also chairman of Haven, where he was CEO from 2018 to 2020.

Loyce Pace: president and executive director of the Global Health Council.

Julie Morita: executive vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and former Chicago commissioner of health.

Celine Gounder: a clinical assistant professor of medicine and infectious diseases at New York University.

Robert Rodriguez: a professor of emergency medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine.

HOT

A New Era at CVS

CVS Health last Friday named Karen Lynch, chief of the company’s Aetna insurance arm, as its next CEO, Lynch will take over for Larry Merlo effective February 1, 2021.

The appointment will makes CVS the largest company by revenue to be run by a female CEO. 

The company reported $256 billion in revenue last year.

The appointment raises questions about CVS’s future in RI and Lynch is historically a Connecticut-based executive.

Lynch presided over Aetna following its acquisition by CVS in 2018.

“We’re on a mission to reshape health care as we know it today,” Lynch said Friday on a call with analysts. “Never before has our purpose been more critical.”

NOT

Governor Raimondo

Too little, too late. The coronavirus in Rhode Island has been at a non-stop upward trajectory since the second week in September.

The Governor bet on divine intervention. She was wrong. Now, the cases, hospitalizations and deaths are piling up.

She thought she could be more strategic than the virus. 

Virus wins again.

NOT

Hope High Oversight

The Hope High Tennis Courts are the poster child for urban education in Rhode Island.

Left decaying for 20 plus years. Then supposedly rehabbed, but no one bothered to check the quality of the work. In fact, the "new" courts were cracking in just a year.  Kudos to Mayor Elorza, Commissioner Infante-Green, Superintendent what is his name? They, if nothing else, are consistent.

Read more HERE

NOT

Bad Budgeting or More?

Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo’s administration has overestimated the cost of testing for the coronavirus by more than $150 million and conducted far fewer tests than promised, according to a GoLocal Investigation.

In May, the House Finance Committee considered coronavirus budget costs provided to the legislature by the Raimondo administration, and the Governor’s fiscal team budgeted $150 million for testing during the remainder of fiscal year 2020 and for all of 2021 — a sixteen month period.

By August, Raimondo’s $150 million testing cost ballooned to $216.7 million according to a memorandum sent by Raimondo’s Jonathan Womer, Director of the Office of Management & Budget.

Now, a GoLocal investigation has found that in the first eight months the state has spent less than $30 million of the $216.7 million budgeted to cover 16 months of testing. And, if the present testing spending continues for the remained of the fiscal year -- the total testing cost will be approximately $60 million or $150 million less than Raimondo's budget costs.

“Roughly 460,000 tests have been processed by labs contracting with the State, or RIDOH’s State Health Laboratories,” said RI Department of Health spokesperson Joseph Wendelken.

“$14.5 million has been spent on lab contracts. A total of $29.7 million has been spent on testing as a whole. This includes money to support all the infrastructure around testing,” said Wendelken.

The average cost per test is $64 for state tests.

Chairman of the House Finance Committee Marvin Abney said the information provided during the pandemic has been flawed and lacks backup.

“It is extremely frustrating. This has been a moving target,” said Abney.

NOT

Frank Picozzi

The honeymoon is over. The new upset king has stubbed his toe a week after an improbable victory.

Warwick Mayor-elect Picozzi named his transition team this week — and none are female or minority. 

Has he heard it is 2020?

“As I promised during my campaign for Mayor I will keep my constituents completely informed and conduct all business publicly - total transparency. I don't take office until January but rest assured that I've already begun working for my city,” Picozzi announced in unveiling the team on Monday. 

SEE LIST BELOW

“My transition team consists of people that volunteered to help. The original four consist of a former Warwick solicitor, former finance director, two former chiefs of staff and a former DPW Director,” said Picozzi, after comments in social media on the composition of the team. 

“These are the people that possess the knowledge I need to navigate this transition. Unfortunately no minorities or females have ever held these jobs in Warwick. My administration will change that,” he said.

Picozzi said he already tapped a top female for his administration. 

“Now that Mayor Solomon has pledged his cooperation in the transition my focus has changed to seeking out qualified staff and I’ve added a former personnel director to aid me in this, her name will be released later today,” he said Thursday. 

"I'll also be bringing in experts in various areas to aid me in interviews for certain positions," he said. 

“It’s also important to note that no one on this team is being compensated in any way and none will be a part of my administration,” he added. 

"I’ve selected the first four listed because they have over 100 years of combined experience and expertise in Warwick’s City government. I’ve chosen Mr Testa and Mr Benson because I have tremendous respect for their intelligence and their expertise in the workings of the Warwick School Department," he said. 

Transition Team:

Mark Carruolo – former Chief of Staff.
Peter Ruggiero- former City Solicitor.
Ernest Zmyslinski- former Director of Finance.
David Picozzi- former DPW Director and Chief of Staff.
David Testa- Warwick School Committeeman.
Charles Benson - former Chairman of the Warwick School Committee.
Mark Carruolo is Chairman.

NOT

Bad Ideas

There are bad ideas and then there are REALLY bad ideas.

The Providence Police officer that has been charged with assaulting a handcuffed man in custody continues to promote his martial arts/personal defense school, while new video of the incident emerged this week. 

Providence Police Sergent Joseph Hanley was charged with simple assault in May, for the incident that took place in April.

Hanley, who claims to have a 3rd-degree black belt in Jujitsu, runs a self-defense school, "JHanley's Self-Defense."

“Training tips: Never underestimate your opponent!” says the school in a video posted on October 31, featuring Hanley. “Don’t be afraid to push your comfort zone and try new things!”

Hanley, who has been posting videos and charging for services dating back before 2020, can be found in the Rhode Island Corporations Database for "JHanley's Self Defense, LLC," which was only incorporated in October.

"Sensei Joseph has instructed other members of law enforcement, first responders, nurses, and more in life-saving self defense," says the school. "Not only do his methods keep people safe, but also gives them the confidence to defend themselves, and the control for less damage/injury to the attacker/aggressor when necessary."