2023 - Page 95

By LYNNE TERRY/Oregon Capital Chronicle For the first time in three years, the Oregon Health Authority is poised to examine its Medicaid rolls to determine who still qualifies for the free, taxpayer-funded health insurance program. When the pandemic hit, the federal government extended benefits to states that kept people on Medicaid, and in Oregon, those numbers have swelled by hundreds

By JULIA SHUMWAY/Oregon Capital Chronicle SALEM — Public employee unions and state lawmakers have struck a deal on a proposal to stop state employees who moved out of state earlier in the pandemic from being reimbursed for traveling back to Oregon. Senate Republican Leader Tim Knopp, R-Bend, introduced Senate Bill 853 to ban the state from paying for travel costs for employees

GRANT STRINGER/regon Capital Chronicle SALEM — A bipartisan group of state lawmakers is once again trying to give Oregonians the power to pump their own gasoline. House Bill 2426 would allow for self-service gas pumps. But it would require gas stations in some counties to keep attendants for drivers who might need help filling up — and to protect those jobs.

By BEN BOTKIN/Oregon Capital Chronicle SALEM — State lawmakers want Oregon to build a pipeline that allows the state to have enough nurses to care for patients in hospitals, clinics and long-term care facilities. A crisis is at the heart of the push: Hospitals and other health care providers often struggle to recruit and retain nurses. The pandemic hastened the

By NIGEL JAQUISS/Willamette Week SALEM — Connie Winn, director of the Oregon Racing Commission, stumbled out of the gate last week when questioned in a hearing before the Joint Ways and Means Subcommittee on Transportation and Economic Development. Winn presented an update on her agency’s activities and budget Feb. 13 and then asked committee members if they had questions. It

By NICOLE BALES/The Astorian In a divided 4-3 vote last week, the Oregon Board of Forestry decided to stay the course on a draft habitat conservation plan amid growing pressure from counties and the timber industry to start over. The special virtual meeting was called late last week after county and timber industry leaders raised alarm over new data on