Senator Blevins has always made keeping our families safe a top priority and this year she took on strangulation, a crime that’s often a red flag for even more violent domestic abuse, by making it a felony in its own right.

Because strangulation wasn’t previously an offense and because it can be hard to spot in some cases, it was often plea-bargained down to a misdemeanor.

“Treating this crime as a misdemeanor sent the wrong message to abusers and their victims,” Blevins said. “We need to treat this crime with the seriousness it deserves.”

Until recently, health insurance companies could set rates and Delaware could do nothing to challenge excessive increases. Thanks to a determined effort by Senator Patricia Blevins, that’s changed.

Under legislation Blevins sponsored, health insurance rates are now subject to the same kind of state review as are life, homeowners or car insurance.

The new law gives the Insurance Department 30 days to review requests by health insurance companies to raise their rates. If the commissioner doesn’t think the increases are justified, they can be adjusted.