A group of volunteer advisors to the Oregon Health Authority has voted Tuesday to make the state the third in the nation to seek federal approval for a basic health program.
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The government has allocated $4M to restore the Crooked River
The federal government is sending Central Oregon $4M to help restore native salmon and steelhead runs in the Deschutes River Basin. Learn more via OPB here.
READ THE ORIGINAL OREGON PUBLIC BROADCASTING ARTICLE HERE
This image is a work of a Bureau of Land Management* employee, taken or made as part of that person’s official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, the image is in the public domain in the United States.
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Oregon approved to issue another $43 million in Pandemic EBT food aid to 99,000 young children
Oregon will issue more Pandemic EBT food for young children. Find out more here.
SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) – The Oregon Department of Human Services will be issuing additional food benefits for young children whose families received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits between Sept. 1 2022 and May 11, 2023.
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New, wider footbridge at Smith Rock State Park ready to welcome hikers, climbers
The new wooden walk bridge at Smith Rock is open! Learn more here.
After a 2-month closure for the replacement project, a new, wider footbridge is ready to welcome climbers and hikers at Smith Rock State Park. Another project underway is a new helipad for medical personnel, in case of emergencies.
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Oregon DMV now offers testing from anywhere with Internet access
You can now take your DMV knowledge test online. Learn more here.
SALEM, Ore. – Oregon’s Department of Motor Vehicles announced on Wednesday that customers can take their DMV knowledge test anywhere with reliable internet access.
The DMV said that with this change those needing to take the test no longer need to go to a DMV office but can instead test online with a computer equipped with a webcam, keyboard, and mouse. This online testing service is now part of the agency’s growing menu of available services available at DMV2U.
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After rain, campfires now allowed in most places across Oregon
You can now have a campfire in most places across Oregon. Learn more here.Heavy rain over the past week has dropped fire danger and returned the ability to have a campfire in most places across the state.All national forests on the state’s west side lifted “public use restrictions” over the past week, which in effect means that campfires and other activities, such as operating chainsaws and driving ATVs, are allowed.
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Oregon becomes 3rd in nation to seek federal approval for a basic health program
Oregon is seeking fed approval for a basic health program. Learn more here.
Article by Oregon Public Broadcasting (By Amelia Templeton (OPB)) – SEE THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE
OHA advisors say yes to free health care for adults at 138-200% of the poverty level
Article by Oregon Public Broadcasting (By Amelia Templeton (OPB)) – SEE THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE
Photo Credits: The emergency wing of the Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center in Northwest Portland on July 28, 2023. Caden Perry / OPB
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Oregon opens applications for new paid family leave program
Oregon’s new paid family leave program begins in September. Learn more here.
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Oregon’s new paid family leave program opened for applications Monday, following four years of preparation — disrupted by COVID — after the Legislature authorized it in 2019 with bipartisan support.
Why it matters: Lack of paid family leave often forces workers to choose between paying the bills and caring for a loved one.
State of play: The program allows employees to take up to 12 weeks of paid time off to care for a new child, a seriously ill family member or their own health or personal safety. It will cover the entire paycheck of a minimum wage worker and scales down as income climbs.
- Oregon is now one of a dozen states where most workers will have this benefit regardless of employer.
- It’s one of five that include “affinity” relationships in the definition of family.
How it works: Both employees and employers have been paying into the Paid Leave Oregon fund since the beginning of this year. Sept. 3 is the earliest that benefits can start.
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California sending five strike teams to boost firefighting capacity in Oregon
Image Courtesy Bedrock Fire 2023 Facebook
Learn more here:
KVAL, SALEM, Ore. – Five CalOES strike teams are headed to Oregon to provide additional capacity as the state deals with a continued forecast of triple-digit temperatures, extreme fire danger, and forecasted lightning, the Oregon State Fire Marshal said.
The strike teams are able to mobilize to Oregon after the Oregon State Fire Marshal (OSFM) made the request Monday through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) and the Oregon Department of Emergency Management.
The strike teams will be pre-positioned in the Willamette Valley to be available to support existing wildfires or any new fire starts that break out.
“With several fires burning on the west slope of the Cascades and the fire danger increasing by the hour, our agency has decided to take the proactive step to bring in additional capacity to support the Oregon fire service,” Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said. “We are thankful for our strong and storied partnership with CalOES and the California fire service. We work extremely well together and offer each other support when our communities are impacted by wildfire and other disasters.”
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Gov. Kotek signs six bills aimed at addressing Oregon's mental health, addiction issues
Gov. Kotek signed bills that will address Oregon’s mental health. Learn more here.
KGW8, SALEM, Ore. — Gov. Tina Kotek vowed to make meaningful strides for behavioral health in Oregon on Tuesday. She signed into law six bills that aim to strengthen the state’s response to mental health and substance abuse issues.
“The bills I am signing mark progress towards building a behavioral health continuum of care that incorporates harm reduction, suicide prevention, stronger tools against substance abuse among youth and adults, and improvements to the implementation of Measure 110,” Kotek said to a group of lawmakers and advocates.
Among the bills signed into law, two focus on preventing overdose deaths. House Bill 2395expands the access of short-acting opioid overdose reversal medications like Narcan and naloxone, making them more readily available in public buildings, stores, police departments and schools.
The second bill, Senate Bill 1043, requires hospitals, sobering and detox facilities to provide two doses of opioid overdose reversal medication to patients when they’re discharged.
“The goal is to help people be healthy and stay alive,” Kotek said.
Then there’s the bill to fix issues with Measure 110, or HB 2513. The governor’s office said it will strengthen Measure 110 by increasing staffing and improving application processes to speed up approval and get funds out the door, centralizing the support hotline to get people connected to services more efficiently, and improving program data collection and accuracy.
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Oregon deputies make largest fentanyl bust in county history
Portland police prevented 138,000 fentanyl pills from hitting the streets in a recent bust. (Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office)
Deputies in Oregon made the largest fentanyl bust in their county history last week, seizing tens of thousands of pills and powder packed into gallon-sized plastic bags, authorities said.
The bust happened Tuesday as investigators were watching a wanted person in Portland’s Goose Hollow neighborhood, the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office said. Deputies took the person into custody “at the opportune time” after watching him walk to a vehicle.
Deputies with the sheriff’s Special Investigations Unit obtained a search warrant for the individual’s car and apartment, finding gallon-sized plastic bags stuffed with fentanyl pills and fentanyl powder, a manual-operated pill press, a commercial grade pill press, $5,000 in cash and a stolen handgun, the sheriff’s office said.
The bags held approximately 58,000 individual fentanyl pills and 16 pounds of fentanyl powder, according to authorities.
Deputies determined that 10 of the 16 pounds of powder was ready to be pressed into an estimated 50,000 pills using the machines. The remaining six pounds of powder, which would have yielded about 30,000 additional pills, was meant to be sold in powder form, officials said.
In total, deputies estimate that their effort prevented approximately 138,000 pills from hitting Portland-area streets. The combined street value of the seizure was estimated to be between $320,000 and $400,000.
