Access & Quality

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THE LUND REPORT ILLUSTRATION/SHUTTERSTOCK

Bills intended to help Oregon pharmacies caught up in walkout

Lawmakers began regulating pharmacy benefit managers in 2015, but the state has never issued an enforcement action

May 23, 2023
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The OHSU Center for Health & Healing Building 2 in the South Waterfront neighborhood in Portland, Oregon, on July 25, 2020. | SHUTTERSTOCK

Oregon lawmakers further ease proton therapy coverage despite lingering debate

Bill tweaks law prohibiting insurers from denying high-cost cancer treatment

May 18, 2023
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Morrow County Health District ambulances in northeastern Oregon. | COURTESY MORROW COUNTY HEALTH DISTRICT

Morrow County Health District sues to block ambulance competition

The lawsuit follows three years of tension with the Boardman fire district

May 16, 2023
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Activists on Feb. 13, 2023, protested the proposed closure of Mount Hood Family Birth Center in Gresham. | JAKE THOMAS/THE LUND REPORT

Legacy’s Gresham maternity unit closure endangered patients, federal regulators say

Blistering federal notice says Legacy’s Gresham-based hospital could lose Medicare payments unless it corrects findings of patient safety violations

May 11, 2023
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Oregon State Hospital in Salem. | OREGON HEALTH AUTHORITY

Proposed fixes for Oregon State Hospital stall in Legislature

Spending measures and legislation to address long-running litigation over the state’s behavioral health system face an uncertain future 

May 9, 2023
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SHUTTERSTOCK

Pre-pandemic health care spending exceeded Oregon’s goal, says report

As officials and providers prepare for health spending caps, a new report shows what’s driving the cost increases that are hitting households hard

May 4, 2023
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U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden at a July 9, 2022 event in Portland. | PHOTO COPYRIGHT: PAMPLIN MEDIA GROUP/PETER WONG (USED WITH PERMISSION)

‘Ghost’ providers abundant in Oregon, Washington, Senate report finds

Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden said patients who pay for Medicare Advantage plans can’t reach mental health providers, and vowed to take action

May 4, 2023
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PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend in Springfield. | COURTESY OF PEACEHEALTH

PeaceHealth, other hospitals’ cuts diminish communities’ access to care

PeaceHealth, facing chronic financial losses, is following a national trend of trimming jobs and services

May 4, 2023
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SHUTTERSTOCK

New OHSU tool would track behavioral health beds

The system will share data on patients and bed availability, making it easier to find needed placements

May 2, 2023
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Yadira Martinez of Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Institute is one of the first dental therapists approved to treat cavities in Oregon. Lawmakers approved the profession in 2021 to save money and combat inequities, but pilot programs set up for training are slated to go away in less than two years. | COURTESY VIRGINIA GARCIA

They were supposed to fix dental shortages, but Oregon has only a handful

Two years ago, state lawmakers approved a new profession to combat inequities and save money. But a narrow licensing path has limited the number of these dental therapists.

Apr 25, 2023