Health Equity

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Portland, Oregon. | SHUTTERSTOCK

Even without a pandemic, health care was wild in 2023

It was a year in which the health care community had hoped to recuperate. Instead, Oregon and southwest Washington saw major changes affecting workers, patients, insurers, state officials and health systems.

Dec 21, 2023

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PIXABAY

The state’s climate benefit for low-income Oregonians is shrinking

State officials failed to persuade the federal government to embrace changes to an agreement around a climate-related devices such as air conditioners, and now are planning a scaled-down program for March

Nov 30, 2023
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Ray Anthony sits at their desk inside Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette's clinic on Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Portland on Sept. 15, 2023. | EMILY GREEN/THE LUND REPORT

Gender-affirming care can be a ‘dice game;’ this navigator tries to improve the odds

Nearly a year into the job, Ray Anthony sees hope and opportunities for improvement in a state that features some of the most protective laws in the nation

Sep 21, 2023
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COURTESY OF SAINT ALPHONSUS.

Prospects of saving Baker City hospital birth center fade

Elected officials say hospital owner Trinity Health is backtracking on staffing to continue obstetrics unit at Saint Alphonsus

Aug 14, 2023
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PIXABAY

Multnomah County dentists picket over proposal to increase patient numbers

Dentists at the county's safety-net dental clinics use lighter schedules one day a week to catch up on paperwork and tackle tougher cases; now they say the county wants to end that practice.

Aug 10, 2023
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Tina Kotek | COURTESY PHOTO

Kotek approves universal health care board but cites concerns

Governor calls $2-million plan costly, potentially duplicative, but supporters say it’s a crucial step toward needed reform.

Aug 8, 2023
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ALEXANDER GREY / PIXABAY

Most people keeping Oregon Health Plan coverage despite eligibility checks

State officials are culling the rolls after the program swelled to cover 1.5 million Oregonians during the pandemic

Jul 20, 2023

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The Capitol Building in Salem. | JAKE THOMAS/THE LUND REPORT

Final week of 2023 Legislature made a mark on Oregon health care

Lawmakers pushed to pass nurse staffing, other bills as interrupted session wound to a close

Jun 26, 2023
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The Oregon Health Authority in Salem. | OREGON HEALTH AUTHORITY

First round of disenrollments looms as Oregon pores through its Medicaid rolls

State officials say about 80 percent of the 1.5 million Oregon Health Plan members will keep coverage

Jun 22, 2023
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For a time, drive-through and walk-in vaccinations were available across the state, including some funded by the state. | PHOTO COPYRIGHT: PAMPLIN MEDIA GROUP (USED WITH PERMISSION)

Legislature likely to provide a fraction of public health officers’ budget request

Local health officials sought $286 million to combat health disparities; a budget bill includes $50 million

Jun 20, 2023
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