Rhode Island’s Department of Health decides who is eligible for the coronavirus vaccine, and how doses are distributed within the state. But the final step, getting the vaccine into a person’s arm, in many cases falls to small, municipal governments, who are managing an emergency response of unprecedented scope and duration.
Sofie Rudin
Science and Environment Reporter
401-302-1057
srudin@thepublicsradio.org
Sofie Rudin is the science and environment reporter at The Public’s Radio. She previously worked as producer, editor, and general assignment reporter. Her series "When is it time to retreat from the sea?" was a finalist for a Covering Climate Now Journalism Award. She also led the development of web pages for reporting on COVID-19, shoreline access and The 2020 Gallery, which won a National Headliner award and PMJA award. Sofie graduated from Brown University in 2017, where she studied geology.
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‘An uphill battle’: Newly inaugurated RI senator on difficult work facing the nation
As political upheaval rocks the nation, it’s also, for some, their first week in elected office. Tiara Mack was sworn in to the Rhode Island State Senate on Tuesday. The progressive Democrat is also a native of Georgia, and she spoke with reporter Sofia Rudin about how she’s responding to this week’s events.
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Supply shortages slow Rhode Island’s vaccine delivery
Rhode Island health officials said Tuesday that the limited supply of coronavirus vaccine is the biggest challenge in the state’s vaccination effort. “One of the biggest obstacles we’re facing right now is that we’re just not getting a lot of vaccine,” commented Dr. Philip A. Chan, a consultant medical director for the state health department. […]
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RI Senate task force recommends granting police chiefs more leeway in disciplining officers
A state Senate task force is recommending that police chiefs be empowered to suspend officers without pay for up to 14 days.
Posted inArticle, Health
Rhode Island prisoners with COVID-19 to receive new antibody treatment
Prisoners at Rhode Island’s Adult Correctional Institutions may have access as early as this week to a new therapy to treat COVID-19 patients at risk of being hospitalized. Patients in Rhode Island began receiving monoclonal antibodies for COVID-19 in late November, and the treatment is now being expanded for use in the state prison system, […]
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Rhode Island’s first doses of COVID-19 vaccine will be administered Monday to hospital workers
Rhode Island’s largest hospital system, Lifespan, started vaccinating staff against the coronavirus on Monday. Rhode Island Hospital and Newport Hospital each received about 1,000 doses of the Pfizer-BiotNTech COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, Lifespan said. Lifespan officials said they began inoculating employees at Rhode Island Hospital that afternoon, including housekeeping, nursing, respiratory therapy, intensive care, and […]
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Families of inmates say prison statements mask conditions inside prisons, where virus rages
In the last month, the number of inmates who tested positive for COVID-19 in Rhode Island’s state prisons jumped from 28 to 574. The Department of Corrections said it is taking action to slow the spread of the virus. But family members of inmates are worried by conflicting accounts they’re hearing from loved ones inside.
Posted inArticle, Health
Medical director for RI prisons quits as coronavirus cases spike
In the midst of a worsening outbreak of COVID-19 at Rhode Island’s Adult Correctional Institutions, the Corrections Department’s medical director is stepping down.
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Rhode Island eases rent assistance requirements to help families on the brink of homelessness
Rhode Island residents no longer need to prove they’ve lost income due to COVID-19 in order to be eligible for the state’s rent relief programs.
Posted inArticle, Health
Rhode Islanders may begin getting COVID-19 vaccines next month, as health officials navigate ‘whirlwind’ of unknowns
The first doses of a coronavirus vaccine may begin arriving in the Rhode Island next month. As more information from drug companies and federal regulators becomes available, the state’s vaccination plan is changing daily.