State Health Policy

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Rachel Solotaroff at Portland's Old Town Clinic. | COURTESY CENTRAL CITY CONCERN

Looming federal changes prompt Oregon Health Plan recommendations

With 200,000 lower-income Oregonians likely soon getting disenrolled from the state’s version of Medicaid, lawmakers next year will tackle a $421 million gap in state funds

Jul 7
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Oregon Health Authority Sejal Hathi addressed agency employees in a video on her first day, Jan. 16, 2024 | SCREENSHOT FROM OHA VIDEO

Sejal Hathi’s resignation followed months of speculation

The outgoing Oregon Health Authority director had long been viewed as a short-timer, and recent controversies had increased the suspicion among her fans and critics that a leadership change was likely coming soon

Jul 2

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SHUTTERSTOCK

Oregon, other states sue Trump administration over new Medicaid work rules

The lawsuit, filed by 25 states and the District of Columbia, contends that the administration’s rules issued to put in place a law approved last year by Congress will hurt medically fragile people, strain safety net clinics and cause rural hospitals to close

Jun 29
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The Oregon Health Authority's headquarters in Salem in November, 2023. | JAKE THOMAS/THE LUND REPORT

Former Health Authority equity director Leann Johnson wins $630,000 settlement

Two years after the Oregon Health Authority fired Johnson, she’ll be reinstated with back pay and allowed to resign, preventing her unlawful termination case from going to trial

Jun 23

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Nicci Schaefer-Limbach and her husband Jordan Schaefer-Limbach turned to in-vitro fertilization to have their daughter, Luella Ray Schaefer-Limbach, who was born in 2022. Every year, they celebrate not only her birthday but also the day in February when the embryo transfer was made. “That's a holiday in this house,” Nicci Schaefer-Limbach said. “That's love child day.” | COURTESY PHOTO

Thousands of Oregonians wrestle with trying to have a baby

At a time when healthcare costs are rising, couples struggling with infertility are fighting to navigate a system that’s not set up to help them — at great personal cost.

Jun 23
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MOHAMED HASSAN/PIXABAY

Oregon’s new civil commitment law is slow to spark change

A law intended to make it easier to get help for people in need is not having the expected effects, and Oregon lawmakers want to know why

Jun 16
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SHUTTERSTOCK

Oregon lags many states in passing infertility coverage but lawmakers not giving up

Though infertility is a disease that affects one in six people, it is not mandated to be covered by commercial insurance policies, largely because of cost

Jun 16
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SHUTTERSTOCK

Oregonians' health insurance premiums slated to jump in January — again

For the second year in a row, Oregonians and small businesses face major increases in their costs for coverage. State officials are hosting a public meeting to gather comments as they review proposed rates.

Jun 9
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EVRYMMNT/SHUTTERSTOCK

Nurses blast state approval of Providence spinoff of home health and hospice to for-profit

The Oregon Nurses Association said the state needs to tighten conditions on the deal between Providence Home Health and Hospice and Compassus, a for-profit Tennessee-based company partly owned by a private equity firm

Jun 4
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