04-05-2025
RI's dentists are at the breaking point; Trump eluding deportation
With the recent announcement of Anchor Medical's closure, Rhode Island is witnessing the inevitable outcome of years of unheeded warnings about our collapsing health care infrastructure.
Dentistry is on the same path ‒ and we're dangerously close to the breaking point.
For years, dentists have sounded the alarm about inadequate insurance reimbursements. Compared to our neighboring states, dentists in Rhode Island are paid, on average, 30% less ‒ some rates are over 50% lower. These disparities aren't just numbers on a spreadsheet; they're the root of a growing access-to-care crisis.
Delta Dental of RI and Blue Cross & Blue Shield of RI have failed to keep pace with regional standards for nearly two decades. This stagnation has real consequences. Rhode Island struggles to attract new dental professionals as seasoned dentists retire. The result? Months-long waits for appointments, especially for oral surgery and pediatric care.
The issue doesn't stop there. Because dentists in Massachusetts and Connecticut can offer more competitive wages to dental assistants and hygienists, Rhode Island practices are losing essential staff ‒ further straining our system.
And perhaps most troubling: fewer dentists are able to participate in the state's dental assistance program. Without fair reimbursement, many can no longer afford to serve Rhode Island's most vulnerable patients.
The time to act is now. What once were warning signs are now full-blown alarms demanding immediate action. If reimbursement rates don't change, dentistry in RI will sink just like another anchor.
Dr. Andrew 'Andy' Gazerro, West Warwick
The writer is a 28 year practicing dentist, president of the Rhode Island Dental Association, and a former member of the American Dental Association Council on Dental Benefit Programs.
Donald Trump was recently overheard telling El Salvador's president, Nayib Bukele, 'Homegrowns are next. …You've got to build about five more places.' By 'places' Trump meant more prisons like the notorious mega-prison in El Salvador known as CECOT. By 'homegrowns' he meant native-born Americans who have committed crimes.
Some Trump officials have suggested that Trump's deportation plans may be expanded to include 'homegrowns,' especially those who have been critical of Trump.
If that happens, it should include our most famous native-born convicted felon. He would be easy for ICE to find. He lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, DC.
Gordon Rowley, Wakefield
Every day my inbox fills with emails from the Democratic National Committee begging for money to help them fight President Trump's billionaires. Enough!
The Democratic Party is funded by the wealthy, same as Republicans. Democratic 'leaders' don't pursue real solutions to our economic problems because they won't bite the hands that feed them. Everyone knows that. Maybe they think that because their billionaires are less nasty than Republican billionaires it's okay. However, either way you cut it the rich don't care about us.
Trump won because the Democrats ran a "stay the course, things are basically fine" campaign. Things are not fine and they haven't been for decades. Most of us can't afford rents or mortgages, health care, child care or higher education. Those of us who grew up middle class remember that our parents or grandparents had more disposable income and less debt with just one working spouse than we do with two. For the less fortunate, things continue to grow more desperate.
If we want real change ‒ a government and economy dedicated to widely shared prosperity and the nurturing of human potential ‒ we need to take to the streets and demand it. With their anti-oligarchy tour Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have demonstrated that they understand this. My money is going to them, not the DNC. We can't rely on the Democratic Party to save us.
Steve D'Amico, Seekonk
Secondhand smoke is killing people. Workers at casinos that still allow indoor smoking are at elevated risk. I have worked at what is now called Bally's in Lincoln since 1979. During my workday, my clothes would accumulate the stench of secondhand smoke to the point that I would need to launder them every day. I retired at age 63, due to health reasons at my doctor's request.
When you inhale secondhand smoke you are inhaling over 7,000 volatile organic compounds, of which at least 70 of them are proven to cause lung cancer, respiratory illness, heart attacks and more. These chemicals include formaldehyde, benzene, naphthalene, and acetaldehyde.
According to the American Cancer Society, exposure to secondhand smoke increases the chances of developing lung cancer by 20%. Imagine, if you will, what that number would rise to if you are there to maintain your livelihood 40 hours per week for years!
Proponents of smoking indoors at casinos would argue that revenue would decline if there was no smoking on the casino floor. This is, in most cases, a fallacy. The cost of insurance, absenteeism, cleaning, and lawsuits add up. Recent surveys suggest that the second most important factor when choosing a casino is a 100% smoke-free environment. In my personal experience at Bally's, I notice that the big spenders are more often non-smokers than smokers.
Joseph Morin, Coventry
In response to the Trump Musk Demolition Crew, John Anderson ('Trump Fixes Problems, Democrats Do Nothing,' Letters, April 20) says about President Trump 'He might fix the problem, he might not. But he's doing something.' Mr. Anderson admires the devastation this administration is causing as it fires civil servants and abolishes programs that feed the starving and aid the suffering.
I am a retired master plumber and I wonder if Mr. Anderson might have a leaky faucet or a slow drain somewhere. I can come over with my chain saw and sledge hammer, my acetylene torch and jackhammer. I'll tear out every pipe and open walls, rip out the water service to the street and toss out his sinks and toilets. It might fix the problem, it might not. But at least I'll be doing something.
Richard Donelly, Providence
If I were ever the target of antisemitism, I could write with more authenticity about the current confusion. Criticizing the elected leaders of Israel is not in itself antisemitism.
Antisemitism is chanting 'Jews will not replace us' and affirming the chanters. Attacking synagogues and worshippers within is antisemitism and much more. Saying "Hitler should have finished the job" and affirming those who say it is antisemitism. If I criticize elected leaders of our own country, that does not mean I hate the United States, but rather, it is love.
Lawrence H. Bradner, Providence
It's that time of year when kind individuals, such as yourselves, can help the less fortunate in your area. How? By leaving non-perishable food by your mailbox or on your porch, to be picked up by your local letter carriers or their helpers by 8 a.m. on Saturday, May 10.
Each year, for the past 33 years, on the second Saturday in May, letter carriers from all 50 States, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, deliver mail and pick up non-perishable food left by their postal patrons.
This yearly venture, known as "Stamp Out Hunger," is the biggest one-day food drive in this country. All the non-perishable food that will be picked up in each individual city or town will be delivered at the end of that day to their local food pantries. For instance, in our town of Bristol, the food will be gladly accepted at the East Bay Food Pantry, on Wood Street. According to Jocelyn King, the pantry's food program manager, the items that they desperately need are; cereal, pasta, rice, jelly and canned ravioli.
You can make a difference. All you need to do is to inspect your cupboards and donate non-perishable food that is NOT outdated. Or, purchase non-perishable food at your favorite grocery store and place it near your mailbox or on your porch by 8 a.m. on Saturday, May 10. Your postal carrier, or helper, will do the rest. Please make a note so you won't forget this very important day to help your area's needy.
Thank you and, together, we can make a difference in someone's life.
Gerry Payette, Bristol
The writer is an East Bay Food Pantry volunteer and retired USPS letter carrier.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI's dentists are at the breaking point; Trump eluding deportation | Letters
