A document obtained by the Portland Tribune is shedding new light on software giant Oracle’s role in the debacle surrounding Cover Oregon’s high-cost failure, by contradicting Oracle’s own version of events and suggesting that some of its own employees agreed that the California corporation let Oregon down.
Though it was filed in Oregon Circuit Court, it has been hidden under a judge’s redaction order. The Portland Tribune, which was able to review the document, also published public court filings about the effort to remove the secrecy surrounding Oracle litigation. Those documents are published here.
According to still-hidden documents, the redacted brief shows that some of Oracle’s own employees “dissed the company’s work for Oregon,” Tribune reporter Nick Burdick reported. Internal emails dating from March 2012 through November 2013 show concerns about the Cover Oregon project that resulted in direct involvement of Oracle founder Larry Ellison, with one employee of the company saying -- with an apparent emailed typo -- that Oracle was “rapoing” Oregon, the Tribune reports.
Oracle’s efforts in Oregon have cost the state an estimated $300 million.
Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and her staff are trying to make public more of the details surrounding the Cover Oregon, according to court documents that are publicly available. They filed a “Plaintiff’s Motion to Remove Confidential and Attorneys’ Eyes Only Designations and Motion to Enforce the Amended Protective Order” last month, in a document that shines a light on some of the state’s frustrations.
Oracle has sought to keep hidden more than 95 percent of the documents it has filed in state courts – including some filings that directly contradict its media campaign, the Oregon Attorney General’s office argued in state court.
From the AG’s court filing:
“Oracle used the APO (Amended Protective Order) to improperly conceal documents that do not support its defenses. Oracle inappropriately designated internal documents demonstrating that Oracle opposed the State hiring a systems integrator, that the HIX (health insurance exchange) was not ready for public launch in February 2014, and that Oracle’s work for the State ‘fails’ the ‘laugh test.’ Oracle’s exploitation of ‘confidential’ and ‘attorneys eyes only’ designations obstructs plaintiffs’ preparation of its witnesses for depositions and trial, hampers the State’s ability to respond to inquiries from administrative agencies and the Oregon legislature, obstructs plaintiffs’ efforts to engage in meaningful settlement discussions, and frustrates on-going federal and congressional investigations. This court should stop Oracle’s abusive practices and its breaches of the APO by granting plaintiffs’ motions.”
The AG’s office proceeds to break down this complaint by detail.
After the health insurance exchange designed by Oracle for Oregon failed in fall 2013, Oracle “launched a public relations campaign to blame the State and Cover Oregon for Oracle’s failures,” according to the state’s motion. Yet the state has seen Oracle documents from November 2013 in which an Oracle developer states that “the two Oracle software products forming the backbone of the HIX were incompatible and thus the Oracle developers were wasting money.” Though this email was filed with the court, it remains hidden.
In typical litigation, the AG’s office would be able to share the emails submitted to the court with state legislators and federal investigators who have been attempting to learn from, respond to and investigate the costly failure of Cover Oregon, but Oracle’s efforts to protect communications – even when they do not contain trade secrets or competitive details – is hampering that public policy effort, according to the AG’s court filing.
“The State and Cover Oregon spent more than $240 million in taxpayer money on the Modernization and HIX Projects. The Oregon legislature, Congress, federal authorities, and the public have a right to a full and complete understanding of the reasons why those Projects failed,” the AG’s motion reads.
Click here to read the full report from The Portland Tribune.
