Political Blame Game Starts Over Missed Nursing Home Appeal

EAST GREENWICH, RI — Gov. Gina Raimondo wants the state Attorney General to investigate a lawyer who worked for her administration, according to news sources. The lawyer, Gregory Hazian, was working for the executive office of the state Health and Human Services department and missed the deadline to appeal the nursing home reimbursement. Raimondo told a press conference Monday she wants to get to the bottom of what happened and find out why, WPRI-TV, WJAR-TV and the Providence Journal reported.

Meanwhile, Raimondo's political opponents are claiming she's the person responsible for the mess. Cranston Mayor Allan Fung said "it's a sad day for Rhode Island," and added the governor "needs to go." Fung, a Republican, is hoping to defeat her in the November election. (They both have Primary opponents, too.)

"Once again, Governor Raimondo dropped the ball, costing Rhode Island taxpayers tens of millions of dollars! One of her senior legal counsellors - whom the state didn't even know was ineligible to practice law - didn't file an appeal, her health and human services secretary denied even knowing about a $24 million lawsuit against his department, and the Governor ran away from the press for most of the day," he said.

Former state Rep. Joe Trillo, running for governor as an independent, said the missed deadline was "yet another blunder by her administration" and could cost the state millions.

“Rather than take responsibility, the Raimondo (administration) is doing what it does best, passing the buck, placing the blame on someone else, a state lawyer, for missing the deadline," he said. "This doesn’t fly with me, nor anyone else, who understands how state government and the legal system works. The fact of the matter is Governor Gina Raimondo herself, as well as her Health & Human Services Secretary Eric Beane, under her direct leadership are charged with overseeing such matters so critical to our state’s financial resources. Now, a missed filing deadline in a nursing home lawsuit will most likely cost the state millions of Medicaid dollars and this is completely unacceptable.”

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