Rep. Rob Nosse (D-Portland) introduced a bill that would provide additional beds for Oregonians suffering from behavioral health problems on Monday. Members of the House Committee on Behavioral Health and Health Care discussed House Bill 2544 during a public hearing. The bill would appropriate money from the general fund to the Oregon Health … Read more
Happy holidays! Our last Oregon newsletter of 2022 includes some information about some of the on-deck health bills for next year, updates on the state’s development of a Basic Health Program to continue Medicaid coverage for those expected to lose coverage once the PHE ends, and several workforce support initiatives underway in the state. Thanks … Read more
Like most states, Oregon faces significant challenges in growing and supporting its healthcare workforce. Industry leaders discussed some useful tools for addressing those challenges during last month’s 2022 Oregon State of Reform Health Policy Conference. Jennifer Purcell, Director of the Higher Education Coordinating Commission’s Future Ready Oregon program, discussed the program, which was … Read more
Unionized health care workers have voted to ratify a new contract with Oregon Health & Science University, putting talks of a strike at the school to rest. AFSCME Local 328 workers voted on a proposed agreement from Oct. 3rd through Oct. 9th, and a contract with the university that will run through 2025 … Read more
Union members who work at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) will have an opportunity to vote on a proposed new 3-year contract with their employer next week. More than 7,000 OHSU workers, including respiratory therapists and pharmacists, are represented by AFSCME Local 328. Approximately 93% of workers represented by the union voted … Read more
Vaccine boosters and breakthrough infections following vaccination both provide a substantial and potentially pandemic-breaking immunity against COVID-19, according to new laboratory research from Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU). The study, published Wednesday in the journal Med, is the latest in a series of OHSU discoveries using blood samples to characterize immune response … Read more
Thousands of Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) employees could go on strike within the coming weeks. More than 7,000 employees, including respiratory therapists and pharmacists, authorized their bargaining team to call a strike on Aug. 26th. Approximately 93% of workers represented by AFSCME Local 328 voted to authorize the strike. Jennie Olson, … Read more
My name is Eli Kirshbaum and I’m a Senior Reporter/Editor here at State of Reform. Emily is out on vacation for the next two weeks, so I’m stepping in to write her newsletters while she’s gone. Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or comments during her time off—I’d be happy … Read more
Oregon’s Medicaid delivery system has undergone many changes in the past decade, and state health officials continue to try and improve it. The state transformed its Medicaid program in 2012 by establishing coordinated care organizations (CCOs) under a federal Medicaid demonstration waiver to provide care for its Medicaid population. The state executed a … Read more
Dale and Julie Burghardt’s $5 million gift will establish a new Food Allergy Center at the Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine, which will be the first and only food allergy-focused academic health center in the Pacific Northwest. Their gift will support startup costs for the center, including a new endowed … Read more