2020 - Page 18

By PETER WONG/Oregon Capital Bureau Rep. Janelle Bynum of Clackamas has declared she will seek to wrest the House speakership from Tina Kotek, the Portland Democrat who has held the job for the past eight years. Bynum was just reelected to her third term from District 51, which covers parts of Clackamas and Multnomah counties. Kotek was reelected to her

Oregon reports 876 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 5 new deaths COVID-19 has claimed five more lives in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 742, the Oregon Health Authority reported at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. Oregon Health Authority reported 876 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, bringing the state total to 52,770. The

By MICHAEL KOHN/Oregon Capital Bureau Oregonians recycle lots of bottles and cans, but those that are picked up curbside, or are just lost, are never redeemed for their deposit. State auditors now say Oregon has a chance to collect those deposits and use the money for environmental and recycling programs. That’s according to a report issued Tuesday by the Secretary

By LYNNE TERRY/The Lund Report Blue Cross Blue Shield has agreed to a $2.67 billion settlement in an antitrust lawsuit that is expected to increase competition in the health insurance industry and yield a tiny payout to the system’s members. The settlement stems from a suit filed in 2013 in Alabama on behalf of its policyholders against 36 independent Blue

By BEN BOTKIN/The Lund Report As COVID-19 cases mount across Oregon, hospital from rural Ontario to urban Portland, are continuously monitoring bed capacity using a statewide database that updates every two minutes so hospitals know whether neighboring facilities in the region have room for more patients. Meanwhile, state health officials are incrementally imposing new restrictions to try to slow the

Oregon reports 771 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 3 new deaths PORTLAND — COVID-19 has claimed three more lives in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 737, the Oregon Health Authority reported at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. Oregon Health Authority reported 771 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. Tuesday bringing the state total to

Nine counties on two-week pause starting Wednesday After a significant spike in COVID-19 cases, nine Oregon counties will begin a two-week pause of social activities on Nov. 11. Five counties were announced on Friday and four more counties were added to the list today. Counties with a case rate above 200 per 100,000 people over a two-week period, or more