Team,

COVID-19 cases are skyrocketing in Rhode Island and staffing shortages are plaguing the healthcare system. As a result, Rhode Island's emergency care system is at a breaking point, with patients spending many hours in emergency waiting rooms and care providers stretched too thin.

Times of crisis call for real leadership, and once again the current administration is moving too slowly.

Yesterday, I put out a plan to address the dangerous hospital staffing shortages:

• Use federal stimulus funding to immediately boost compensation for nurses, CNAs, and techs in emergency room settings.
• Call up the National Guard to assist with administrative and technician functions, freeing up nurses to focus on the work only they can do. Just this morning, Governor Baker in Massachusetts activated the National Guard, joining Maine, New Hampshire and others in taking this action.
• Grant temporary reciprocity to healthcare workers with medical licenses in neighboring states.
• Temporarily suspend licensing requirements to allow certain trained medical professionals such as EMTs, paramedics, and retired nurses to assist in hospitals.
• Ensure all hospital employees have access to counseling services as burnout from the past two years is a huge factor in retaining nurses and other healthcare professionals.

We need leadership and we must take these short-term actions to save lives. We also need to address the structural issues that caused staffing issues even before the pandemic.

It's going to take all of us doing our part to get through this surge - getting boosted, wearing masks, and socially distancing. I hope that you and your loved ones stay safe and healthy during these challenging times.

Thank you,

Seth