For one thousand, one hundred and sixty-nine days, Mainers who voted in support of affordable senior housing have waited for their voice to matter.

That is almost 70 percent of people who went to the polls three years ago who voted for the senior housing bond.

No longer will we wait.

Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

Earlier this week I was honored to sign a Financial Order to internally transfer some of the voter-approved $15 million senior housing bond in order to immediately pay for weatherization and home improvement projects so Maine seniors can live safely in their own homes.

I also notified Treasurer Henry Beck that I will authorize the sale of the bond when Maine goes to market in June to fund projects that are ready to be completed.

It is time to build more affordable housing for Maine seniors just as the voters intended.

While the people of Maine authorized this bond nearly three years ago, now we can move proudly forward in our goal of ensuring all Maine seniors can live safely, and with dignity and comfort in the communities they love.

The release of the senior housing bonds would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition, the Maine Council on Aging, the AARP and countless others who have never stopped believing in the power of advocacy to create change.

While the release of the senior housing bonds is an important step, we still need your voices.

These bonds will help build more than 200 affordable units and will fund weatherization improvements for another 100 homes, but we still have more work to do to ensure affordable housing for our seniors.

More than 9,000 Maine seniors remain on a waitlist for safe, affordable housing. Let’s get going.

I look forward to continuing this work with Maine’s advocates, with seniors, and all of you in the coming years.

I am Janet Mills, governor of the State of Maine.

Thank you for listening.

More than a year ago Maine voters, including many of you listening right now, voted overwhelmingly to expand Medicaid at the ballot box.

Maine people have waited long enough. My Administration is implementing the will of the people.

Good morning, I’m Janet Mills, governor of the State of Maine and thank you for listening.

Medicaid expansion is the law of the land in Maine, and that is why on my first day in office I issued Executive Order Number One which directs the Department of Health and Human Services to implement Medicaid expansion as swiftly and aggressively as possible.

That was just over a week ago. Since then already we’ve enrolled 529 Mainers in health care coverage under the Medicaid expansion program.

For many of these people, this has the power to change their lives for the better and, even save their lives.

Now they can see a doctor, receive preventive care, afford critical prescription medications, and much more. Now they can stay healthy, work, and care for their families.

And we’re just getting started.

My Administration will review the applications that were previously denied to ensure that every eligible Mainer is able to access the health care coverage they need.

We will team up with health care providers, advocates, patients, the business community and others to help enroll more eligible Mainers.

And, my Administration will work with the Legislature to craft a biennial budget that ensures that Maine people can receive appropriate health care coverage.

I hope that if you or your family are struggling with medical bills in our complicated health care system, you might explore whether you qualify for expanded Medicaid (MaineCare) so that you can receive the coverage you need and are entitled to.

You can apply to enroll in MaineCare today by visiting www.maine.gov/mymaineconnection

That’s www.maine.gov backslash my M-A-I-N-E connection.

Look, when my husband Stan had his medical challenges five years ago and passed away four years ago I learned an awful lot about the health care system in Maine.

And we were lucky, we had insurance.

But boy dealing with copays and deductibles and the high cost of prescription drugs is a challenge for all of us, an even greater challenge of course if you’re not fortunate enough to have health insurance.

Health care coverage should not be a luxury or a privilege reserved for well to do people.

It is a human right.

So my top priority as governor is to ensure affordable, accessible health care for every Mainer, every small business, every entrepreneur and family across the state.

Medicaid Expansion is the first, necessary step in reaching that goal and I will not rest until it has been implemented according to the will of the people of Maine. I’m Governor Janet Mills, thank you for listening.

Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills, and thank you for listening.

In the past five years at least one thousand six hundred thirty people in Maine have died from drug overdose – more than the population of Chesterville, or Eastport or North Berwick.

418 in 2017 alone – more than one a day.

You know, these people are not “junkies.” They are our neighbors, our co-workers, family members, school mates, graduates of our high schools, our CTEs, our universities and colleges.

They are our sons and daughters. They are people without labels, citizens without stereotype.

History will note that we have lost an entire generation of people to the opioid epidemic and that we have simply failed to address this preventable disease.

It is time to mobilize Maine state government to stem the tide of this deadly epidemic.

As Attorney General, and as a candidate for this Office, and now as a newly sworn Governor, I promised to take action to address the opiate problem.

I’ve said before that as Governor I would make sure there was one person whose sole responsibility would be to flesh out what is working and what is not, to draft a blueprint for change and to report to me every day, every week about our progress.

So I have appointed Gordon Smith to be that person.

Gordon Smith has been Executive Vice President of the Maine Medical Association, he is former Chair of the American Society of Medical Association Council. He has held many other high-ranking positions.

He is an experienced, well-respected, and highly qualified public health expert.

As the Director of Opioid Response, I have complete confidence in his ability to work across departments and to knock down the silos that have prevented us from combating this crisis and protecting Maine families.

Gordon Smith will work closely with medical providers, treatment experts, law enforcement, educators and community members to figure out what is working, and what is not, and determine the concrete steps we can take to change things around.

I think it is time for action. And that that action should begin right now.

Gordon will convene a Prevention and Recovery Cabinet to include all of our commissioners and the Attorney General, in consultation with legislative leaders and will determine our needs and coordinate an effective and prompt response.

And within the next two weeks, with input from Gordon Smith, and our new commissioners Jeanne Lambrew, Michael Sauschuck, Randall Liberty and others, I will issue an Executive Order to direct the specific steps we will take to address this crisis.

Among other things, we will be partnering with hospitals and treatment providers, with jails and community members to increase access to Medication Assisted Treatment, increase availability of life-saving naloxone, to promote effective education and prevention measures, to establish a robust hotline that works and take traffickers off our streets.

In my Inaugural Address, I spoke directly to Mainers suffering from substance use disorder.

I speak to them again and to their loved ones when I say, you are not alone.

You have my word. Wherever you are, we will do everything in our power to bring you back to make our communities, our families and our state whole once again.

We will confront this epidemic together.

I am Janet Mills, governor of the state of Maine.

Thank you for listening.

Good morning, I’m Governor Janet Mills, thank you for listening.

It was the highest honor of my life to take the oath of office to become Maine’s 75th governor.

I am so proud to have joined with thousands of you in reaffirming our shared love for our great state and our commitment to building a brighter future together.

There are many in this state who are “the unsung” as poet Wes McNair has called them.

They are the firefighters and teachers, the techies and hotel workers, the farmers and fishermen, the waiters and loggers, and the barbers and millworkers of our towns.

They are our friends, our neighbors. They are immigrants. Laborers. Veterans. People with disabilities. People from away. People we rely on every day. And many who rely on us.

This governorship is about them, it is about you - the men and women of Maine.

Many days I awake you know to see the mist rising from the Sandy River as it steers its course to the Kennebec, the winter’s breath unveiling a new day in my hometown, a new day in this state.

Then I hear the familiar sounds of chickadees, church chimes and Jake brakes.

This is home in Maine.

We are all in this together.

We all want Maine to have a beautiful environment; happy people; and prosperous communities.

And though we all agree on the goal, we differ about how to get there.

We are Republicans, Greens, Democrats, Libertarians, Independents, and many more besides.

Our diversity is a virtue – one that we should harness to advance good public debate and good public policy.

We welcome the voices of newcomers as well to the public conversation — the young as well as the old, immigrants as well as Native Americans and people who have been here a while, people of color, people of different cultures, people of different orientations.

All are important members of the Maine family.

Now our state must find its own common ground, expand our horizons and become one Maine again.

From the tree streets of Lewiston to the rolling fields of the County, from the Bold Coast to the Height of Land, from Cross Rock in Allagash to Portland’s Promenades, our people will once again find unity of purpose.

It is the bond we all share for our state, for our children longing for security, for newcomers seeking to belong, for all of those who feel left behind and who long for respect and dignity.

One thing we all love is our great state.

And when a family, a community, a state believe in each other, help each other, love each other, great things can happen.

Maine people have greatness within them.  Maine is our home.

We are connected by the rivers and the land, the forests and the mountains.

We are connected by love.

We are one Maine, undivided, one family from Calais to Bethel, from York to Fort Kent.

So now we rise— like the mist over the Sandy River — to seek adventure, with hope in our hearts and love in our souls for the brand-new day.

To you, the people of Maine, I say, welcome home.

Welcome Home.

I’m Governor Janet Mills, thank you for listening.