Health
Oregon Health Authority unveils long-awaited water testing program in Morrow, Umatilla counties
The Oregon Health Authority has launched a program to provide free water testing for Morrow and Umatilla county residents who rely on water from potentially contaminated wells. The program, unveiled Wednesday, marks the first testing program by the state in the two counties and follows criticism of the health authority for being slow to respond […]
Despite attempts to kill it, Affordable Care Act turns 13
Thirteen years ago to the day, the Affordable Care Act was signed into law. And five years ago, my oncologist told me my stage 4 cancer was in remission. As a small business owner, my health insurance is through the Affordable Care Act. So these two dates are inexorably linked in my mind: the insurance […]
What plaintiffs targeting abortion pill want might not even be possible
At the center of the federal anti-abortion lawsuit against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is the abortion drug mifepristone and the regimen that accounts for the majority of abortions in post-Roe America. That’s why many people are bracing for a ruling from a notoriously anti-abortion judge in Amarillo, Texas. The attention and confusion around […]
Oregon lawmakers hear testimony on abortion, gender-affirming care
A sweeping bill intended to guarantee access to abortion and gender-affirming care in Oregon as other states limit rights received its first hearing in the state House Monday, with hours of often-emotional testimony.
Kotek targets behavioral health system crisis – and plans ahead
Gov. Tina Kotek is asking lawmakers to put $74.2 million into behavioral health programs in one bill as she begins crafting a five-year plan to address the state’s crisis. Kotek and the state’s new behavioral health director, Ebony Clarke, spoke Monday to lawmakers on the Senate Health Care Committee about the need to expand mental […]
Oregon Gov. Kotek seeks legislation to fight opioid overdoses
Patients with a history of opioid use would get increased access to overdose reversal medications under a bill backed by Gov. Tina Kotek and top legislative leaders. Senate Bill 1043, would require hospitals and types of providers to give patients two doses of opioid overdose reversal medication when they leave the facility if they have […]
Ending a pregnancy in 14 states leaves few options. Some are looking to Europe and India for help
The pills came in a dark salmon-colored envelope sealed with a plastic covering that traveled more than 7,000 miles, over a dozen time zones from Nagpur, India, in almost exactly one week. They were placed partially under the doormat of a home in a state with one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the […]
Heat pump programs to protect vulnerable Oregonians from extreme heat not yet rolled out
After the 2021 heat dome left more than 100 dead in Oregon, state Democrats committed millions of dollars to help residents and landlords install heat pumps, the climate-friendly alternative to air conditioners and furnaces. Then-Gov. Kate Brown signed Senate Bill 1536 into law in March 2022. The law created $27 million in financial assistance and […]
As opioid overdose deaths keep rising, report urges lawmakers to develop new approaches
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers should view America’s staggering opioid crisis, including the rise of illicit fentanyl, through an “ecosystems” approach, argues a massive RAND Corporation report published Thursday. That means they .should examine the gaps and interconnections among emergency response, data collection, education, treatment, housing and law enforcement, the report advises The 600-page volume — which […]
Why some states want to guarantee Medicaid coverage from birth to age 6
Before the Covid-19 public health emergency began in 2020, millions of children churned on and off Medicaid each year — an indication that many were losing coverage because of administrative problems, rather than because their family’s income had increased and made them ineligible. Spurred by pandemic-era lessons, several states are rethinking their enrollment policies for […]
Lawmakers consider proposal to expand behavioral health system to house, treat hundreds of people
In the central coastal region of Lincoln County, nearly one in 20 adults have an addiction. Yet the county lacks a residential facility to house and treat people who suffer from drug and alcohol addictions, forcing them to seek help in Baker City, which is sometimes the closest option but far from family and friends. […]
Wyden, Rosenblum vow to fight expected ruling this week against abortion pill
Patient access to a federally approved abortion pill could be on the line this week at a U.S. District Court hearing in Texas. Oregon’s senior U.S. senator, Democrat Ron Wyden, said during a news conference in southeast Portland on Sunday that Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a conservative who’s presiding over a case by an anti-abortion group […]