This committee includes members of the Rhode Island Foundation-led Long Term Health Planning Committee, which has developed the Health in Rhode Island plan. Health in Rhode Island sets a 10-year vision where Rhode Island is the healthiest state in the nation, and where all Rhode Islanders have the opportunity to be in optimal health, to live, work and play in healthy communities, and to have access to high quality and affordable healthcare. The committee’s work has been endorsed in an Executive Order issued by former Governor Raimondo, and by both the Rhode Island House of Representatives and Rhode Island State Senate. Connecting these two aligned efforts provides the opportunity to work collaboratively in ensuring that, wherever possible, the design and implementation of the IAHS, if approved, is informed by, and aligns with, the priorities of the Health in Rhode Island plan.
Process The committee met eight times between June and November, and the final recommendations include input from all committee members. The group generally operated by consensus, though not necessarily unanimity. In addition to the experience, expertise, and perspective of the committee members, this work was informed by multiple community outreach efforts that were conducted over the past five months. In late July and early August, online focus groups were conducted with Rhode Island residents. The first subset of groups were based on geography, with specific goals in mind regarding the inclusion of voices from the Asian American and Indigenous/ American Indian communities. The geographic regions targeted were Northern Rhode Island, Warwick, Providence, and Newport. The second subset of groups were conducted with Black Rhode Islanders and Latino Rhode Islanders (the latter conducted in Spanish). The purpose of these focus groups was to gain better understanding of community perceptions of the proposed IAHS, community priorities for Rhode Island’s healthcare system, and how to ensure that these priorities are achieved. A summary of the focus groups is provided in the Appendix. 17
