AUGUSTA

LePage: State left to pay for health care program

Gov. Paul LePage says federal dollars have flowed into Maine for years to pay for health care to Maine’s most vulnerable.

In his weekly radio address, LePage said Mainers have become accustomed to a welfare program that Democrats believe should be universal and free. But LePage said the problem with that ideology now is that those federal tax dollars are no longer being handed out, and state taxpayers must make up the difference.

The governor said it’s in Maine’s best interest to introduce new ideas to the federal government that give states more flexibility in running those programs.

In the Democratic response, Rep. Emily Ann Cain acknowledged that health care costs are rising, but blaming the federal government and cutting services for thousands of Mainers are not the answer to the problem, she said.

CARRABASSETT VALLEY

Maine Huts and Trails director is stepping down

The first and only executive director of an organization that’s developing a back-country network of huts along 180 miles of trails in Maine’s western mountains is stepping down.

The Maine Huts and Trails nonprofit is looking for a new executive director to replace David Herring, who has been with the organization since 2005 and plans to move on after this winter.

Maine Huts and Trails was formed with the long-term aim of building 12 overnight shelters and non-motorized trails stretching from near the New Hampshire border to the Moosehead Lake region. Each shelter has a main lodge, private rooms with beds, hot showers and home-cooked meals.

So far, Maine Huts and Trails has built three huts along 50 miles of trails.

— From news service reports