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A woman in a doctor's white coat speaks on a courthouse steps.

Dr. Christina Francis, an OB-GYN from Fort Wayne, Indiana, and chair of the board of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, speaks in front of the 5th Circuit courthouse in New Orleans on May 17, 2023, following arguments on a case challenging FDA approval of the abortion pill. | GREG LAROSE/LOUISIANA ILLUMINATOR

Three-judge panel in U.S. appeals court hears arguments in abortion pill case

The ruling in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals will likely be put on hold as the case moves up to the U.S. Supreme Court

May 18, 2023

Tents in downtown Portland on March 14, 2022. | SHUTTERSTOCK

State lawmakers eye forced treatment to address overlap in homelessness and mental illness

A pair of bills in Oregon would have expanded the criteria for involuntary commitment, though they failed to move forward this session. In California, similar bills are garnering more support.

May 18, 2023

SHUTTERSTOCK

Congressional committee, regulators question Cigna system that lets its doctors deny claims without reading patient files

About 80% of the coverage denials appealed by policyholders under Cigna’s Medicare Advantage plans are overturned

May 18, 2023

St. Charles Health System in Bend. | COURTESY OF ST. CHARLES HEALTH

Nurses to vote on strike authorization at Bend hospital

Union representing more than 1,000 nurses at St. Charles Health System says management is refusing to compromise in contract negotiations

May 16, 2023
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Morrow County Health District ambulances in northeastern Oregon. | COURTESY MORROW COUNTY HEALTH DISTRICT

Morrow County Health District sues to block ambulance competition

The lawsuit follows three years of tension with the Boardman fire district

May 16, 2023
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SHUTTERSTOCK

Post-Roe abortion bans force pregnant people with life-threatening complications to travel

Idaho woman traveled to Oregon to terminate pregnancy with fatal fetal anomalies

May 16, 2023

MARQUISE KAMANKE/UNSPLASH

Study reveals staggering toll of being Black in America: 1.6M excess deaths over 22 years

Because so many Black people die young, their higher mortality rate resulted in a cumulative loss of more than 80 million years of life compared with the white population

May 16, 2023

PIXABAY

Oregon Health Plan will cover colon cancer screening for younger patients starting next year

The American Cancer Society says states should lower the age for screening coverage to 45. In Oregon, coverage starts at age 50 until January 2024.

May 16, 2023

TOBIAS TULLIUS/UNSPLASH

As more hospitals create police forces, critics warn of pitfalls

Nearly 40 states including Oregon have laws that establish or increase penalties for assaults on health care workers. Now some states have approved or are working on laws that allow the creation of hospital police forces.

May 16, 2023