The Lund Report

The Measure 110 Oversight and Accountability Council discusses during its July 3, 2024 meeting a new formula for grants that is intended to set a funding floor for rural counties. | SCREENSHOT

Measure 110 spending plan means Portland area will lag despite size, diversity

New rules to help rural counties mean the Portland region will receive an estimated $13 million a year in recovery services less than what its population calls for, showing challenges in funding for recovery services

Jul 9, 2024
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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

New records show relations soured before Oregon Health Authority equity director’s firing

Leann Johnson criticized top agency leaders and filed formal complaints against them claiming discrimination and retaliation. In firing her, Director Sejal Hathi cited a backlog of unresolved civil rights complaints that equity managers attributed to understaffing

Jul 2, 2024

The Oregon Health Authority in Salem. | OREGON HEALTH AUTHORITY

New free health care program to cover about 100,000 Oregonians

New ‘OHP Bridge’ state coverage will cover people who earn too much to qualify for the Medicaid-funded Oregon Health Plan starting July 1

Jul 1, 2024
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SHUTTERSTOCK

State needs to spend $850 million on behavioral health beds over five years, report says

Inpatient psychiatric care gaps fuel racial and geographic disparities, according to an OHA-contracted study

Jul 1, 2024

An employee of the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services helps a consumer pick a health care plan on the federal online health insurance marketplace. | DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER AND BUSINESS SERVICES

More than 80% keep coverage as Oregon Health Plan eligibility checks near completion

The state will disenroll fewer Oregonians than expected from the state's version of Medicaid, but members are cautioned to watch their mailboxes with 120,000 renewal notices still being sent out

Jun 27, 2024

The Behavioral Health Resource Center at 333 SW Park Avenue in Portland on Nov. 16, 2022. | EMILY GREEN/THE LUND REPORT

County health and social services contracts need better oversight, auditors say

Multnomah County's contract oversight practices need revamping to ensure people are getting the services they need, according to a report issued by Auditor Jennifer McGuirk. County officials say they're working on it.

Jun 27, 2024
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State Behavioral Health Director Ebony Clarke said she thinks the state needs to be audacious and bold when it comes to improving care for low-income Oregonians. | SCREENSHOT, OREGON HEALTH FORUM

Oregon behavioral health fissures add costs and block access, panel says

Oregon's notoriously fragmented system spawns administrative tasks and barriers at the expense of patients and providers, according to a panel of experts who spoke Wednesday

Jun 26, 2024
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Oregon State Hospital in Salem, Oregon, on Nov. 21, 2023. | JAKE THOMAS/THE LUND REPORT

Oregon State Hospital sexual harassment lawsuits settled for $1 million

Two suits accused a former state nurse of allegedly attempting to use his position of authority to groom patients for sex, and claimed state hospital management had a reputation for turning a blind eye toward similar situations despite patients' inability to provide consent

Jun 25, 2024
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A room inside the Recovery Works NW's new withdrawal management facility on Southeast Foster Road in Portland, Ore. Most rooms are limited to two beds. | EMILY GREEN/THE LUND REPORT

Behavioral health access, language barriers persist, new report finds

Low-income Oregonians still don’t have enough mental health and substance use treatment providers, and patients who need interpreters too often don’t get them, an independent state advocate reports

Jun 25, 2024

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

Firing of Oregon Health Authority diversity chief sparks backlash

Not even six months on the job, agency director Sejal Hathi is grappling with questions and dissension after the unexplained firing of the agency’s strongest voice on equity issues, Leann Johnson