Super candid here.

Nothing compares to Mass Health, but beyond Mass Health the medical system in RI is downright odd and disparate. The quality of your care will largely depend on where you go.

I was on Medicaid when I first moved here. Coverage was good, except for mental health. It is mostly because their rates are quite low and many providers don’t accept them but it is the same in MA. Rates are being renegotiates and I believe there is a bill in place to fix this. There is no PT1 for medical appointment transportation, and a few obscure things. You basically need a PHD to navigate their website and complete the application, it is best if you go to a clinics financial counselor and they sign you up. Gov. slashed human services budget for staff last year, so you will have a hard time getting anyone on the phone and the lines are long for their offices. Basically, don’t even try to do it yourself because you will only delay the process. Once you are on, you are good.

Medically, I had a hard time finding good providers or a place that didn’t change my pcp every year. Specialists are few, I’ve had not great experiences with teaching clinics (which were my go-to back in Boston) , I will explain below. Racism is quite a thing in certain locations. I am now in private insurance but I still go to a Providence Health Center (usually used by folks on Medicaid). People are nice and I am not the odd duck.

My best experiences so far: Randall Square Health Center, Thundermist, Women and Infants, and Lifespan

I would stay away from:

Charter Care: lost my medical records 3 times, and accused me of lying about the medications I was on (which I couldn’t prove because they lost my medical records 3 times, my old clinic had signature proof of this) The student was nice and more knowledgeable than the instructor. The instructor was a rude a-hole. I didn’t sue them because I was too sick to withstand it. Their endo should have retired 20 years ago, nice to me but I felt bad of how he treated the intern. Just found another clinic.

Fatima- in my husbands words “that’s where ppl go to die”. I thought he was exaggerating until I saw the ratings https://data.news-leader.com/hospital-compare/our-lady-of-fatima-hospital/410005/

Roger Williams: part of charter care. I heard plenty of bad things from people around me so I’ve stayed away.

Hope this helps