Special Assistant Attorney General/Healthcare and Insurance

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Organization information
Organization name: 
Rhode Island Office of the Attorney General
Job type: 
Legal - Civil
Position Description: 

SPECIAL ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL
HEALTH CARE AND INSURANCE ADVOCATE
CIVIL DIVISION
RHODE ISLAND OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
PAY GRADE 8732 ($80,315 – $91,044) OR COMMENSURATE WITH EXPERIENCE
November 30, 2022 to January 2, 2023

The Rhode Island Office of the Attorney General is seeking to fill a position within the Health Care Unit of the Public Protection Bureau of the Civil Division, which offers the opportunity to participate in setting the course for an expanded health care role for the Office of Attorney General. This position includes the role of the Insurance Advocate, created to fulfill the Attorney General’s statutory responsibilities pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 27-36-1 et seq and 27-36-19 and 27-36-20. In addition to supporting the work of the Health Care Unit, the responsibilities in this position include promoting public health by addressing health care payment systems and their effect on accessibility and delivery, advocating for the rights of consumers at hearings on health insurance rates held by the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner, working with experts to ensure affordability and quality metrics for regulated health insurance are being met and representing the Office of the Attorney General on committees and boards, among other functions.

About the Office: The Attorney General is the state’s top lawyer and law enforcement official, protecting and serving the people and interests of Rhode Island through a broad range of duties. Every day, the Office’s attorneys fight to ensure the public safety of the state’s communities, improve the economic security of its citizens, safeguard the state’s spectacular natural resources, and restore the public’s trust in government. Assistant and Special Assistant Attorneys General represent the people of Rhode Island in civil and criminal matters before trial courts, appellate courts, and the supreme courts of Rhode Island and the United States. The Office is unique among attorneys general offices across the country. Out of fifty states, only two other offices share the same broad criminal mission. The Office’s attorneys prosecute complex and violent crimes but also functionally serve as one of the nation’s largest district attorney’s offices, prosecuting all felonies throughout the state.

Civil Division: The Civil Division leads affirmative and defensive litigation on behalf of the state, counsels the Attorney General and other government officials, and performs a range of regulatory duties. From identifying and pursuing landmark civil actions against businesses and individuals that have harmed Rhode Islanders to defending state laws, state agencies, state general officers, legislators, and employees, the Division and its attorneys are at the forefront of matters being litigated before trial courts, appellate courts, and the supreme courts of Rhode Island and the United States.

Public Protection Bureau: The Public Protection Bureau has been recently created within the Civil Division of the Attorney General’s office and is comprised of four units – Health Care, Consumer and Economic Justice, Environmental and Energy and Civil & Community Rights. Each of these units affirmatively develops legal work and initiatives by using the legal authority of the Office of Attorney General to advance and protect dignity, quality of life, and equity for all Rhode Islanders. The Public Protection Bureau and each of its units also engage with community members and advocates to identify needed change and with thought partners to understand drivers of poverty and inequities within existing systems. Litigation and other initiatives are chosen based on understanding where change is needed and the relationship of evident needs to larger drivers of inequity, and are prioritized by evaluating the potential for impact.

Health Care Unit: The mission of the Health Care Unit is to contribute to improving individual and community health, understanding that the health of Rhode Islanders requires access to the healthcare market as well as safe and healthy communities, homes, workplaces and schools, and working to make health care more accessible, affordable and of consistently high quality for Rhode Islanders by removing obstacles to care. Through the work of the Health Care Advocate and the Insurance Advocate, the Health Care Unit performs key regulatory oversight of significant hospital transactions and protects consumers against increasing health insurance rates and costs.

Duties and Opportunities: The Insurance Advocate collaborates with the Health Care Advocate and with other attorneys in the Public Protection Bureau in identifying and investigating potential cases, fulfilling regulatory responsibilities in health care, prioritizing Health Care Unit affirmative work, case development, pre-trial litigation, negotiation, written and oral argument, trial work, and appeals. This will include participation in the following:

• Identify, support and engage in litigation and other initiatives, including with attorneys in the Civil Division who are collaborating on Health Care Unit work;
• Have or develop a deep knowledge of health care payment systems, public and private, and the role of state-regulated health insurance within those systems;
• Identify ways in which the health care payment systems in Rhode Island can best serve communities and ways in which those systems could be improved;
• Maintain communication with community members to respond to constituent complaints related to health insurance, identify need, understand impact and report about work, working with the Public Information Officer and the Director of Community Engagement;
• Advocate for continued affordability and to educate the public about the drivers of increasing costs of health care before the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner;
• Draft the Attorney General’s public comments on rate requests, including for Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans, to advocate for continued affordability and to educate the public about the drivers of increasing costs of health care;
• Review proposed and enacted insurance-related legislation and regulations;
• Maintain standards of quality legal work; and
• Along with leadership in the RIAG, work with agency partners throughout State government including service on government bodies in an ex officio capacity.

Opportunities for Special Assistant Attorneys General in the Civil Division also include attending National Association of Attorney General trainings and conferences throughout the country, serving on state, local, federal, and/or non-profit boards, commissions, working groups, and/or task forces as a designee of the Attorney General, providing substantive expertise to legislative or policy initiatives, supervising student interns as part of the Office’s legal internship program.

Requirements: 

Eligibility: The successful applicant must have a law degree from an accredited law school and be an active member in good standing of the bar of any jurisdiction. If not a member of the Rhode Island Bar, the candidate must be eligible for admission to the Rhode Island bar and, if necessary, be willing to take the Rhode Island bar examination.

Qualifications: Strong candidates will have a demonstrated commitment to public interest law. Litigation experience is preferred. While knowledge of law pertaining to health care, investigations, and/or regulation of transactions is preferred, it is not necessary if a candidate has a demonstrated ability to learn new areas of law and apply that knowledge effectively and creatively. The position will require an ability to work in teams, an interest in creative legal thinking and a demonstrated ability to both envision and build on an organizational level. Candidates must have strong written skills and possess the capacity to function in a demanding environment. Ability to work with other state government employees and communicate with members of the public is a must. The applicant should bring innovative thinking to the ways in which the Office of the Attorney General can consistently and increasingly meet the needs of Rhode Island residents.

To apply: 

How to Apply: Applicants should submit a (1) a cover letter summarizing why you are interested and describing the skills and abilities you possess that will enable you to succeed in this position, (2) resume, (3) list of three references, and (4) a writing sample to:

Aida Crosson
Director of Administration
Office of the Attorney General
150 South Main Street Providence, RI 02903
[email protected]

Equal Opportunity Employer: The Attorney General’s Office is stronger, more credible, and more capable when its employees bring diverse backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives to their work. The Office encourages all qualified applicants from all ethnic and racial backgrounds, veterans, LGBTQ individuals, and persons with disabilities to apply.
All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, disability, or covered veteran status.

Other Information: Finalists will be subject to a full background investigation including reference checks. All offers of employment are contingent upon successful completion of the background investigation, receipt of letters of good standing from each Bar in which the applicant is a member, and membership in good standing with, or eligibility for admission into, the Rhode Island Bar. In certain limited circumstances, applicants may be hired pending temporary or full admission.

Notes: 
Equal Opportunity Employer
Salary range: 
$80,315-$91,044
Submission deadline: 
Monday, January 2, 2023