Oregon Health Authority

Emergency Messages as of 4:38 PM, Fri. Feb 14

No information currently posted.

Subscribe to receive FlashAlert messages from Oregon Health Authority.

News Release

Get School, Daycare Immunizations Updated Before Feb. 19 -02/12/25

February 12, 2025

Media contact: Erica Heartquist, 503-871-8843, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov

Get school, daycare immunizations updated before Feb. 19

Parents and caregivers must provide kids' vaccine records to schools and child care facilities with kids' vaccine records

PORTLAND, Ore. -- With the Feb. 19 deadline fast approaching for updating children's vaccinations, the Oregon Immunization Program at Oregon Health Authority reminds parents and caregivers that their children may miss out on school or child care if their records on file show missing immunizations.

By the third Wednesday in February, under state law, all children in public and private schools, preschools, Head Start and certified child care facilities must submit documentation showing they are up to date on required immunizations or have an exemption. This year, if a child's vaccination records do not show up-to-date immunizations by Feb. 19, the child's school or child care center will send them home.

"Vaccine-preventable diseases can be highly contagious, with 1,246 cases of pertussis or whooping cough in Oregon last year--the highest number of cases since 1950" said Stacy de Assis Matthews, school law coordinator in OHA's Public Health Division. "Immunizations remain our best defense against these diseases, keeping kids and school communities healthy and safe."

Leading up to the school immunization deadline in 2024, local health departments in Oregon sent 24,306 letters to parents and caregivers informing them that they needed to submit records showing up-to-date immunizations for their children. That led to a total of 4,446 children being sent home and not being able to attend school until their families provided the necessary vaccination records.

YouTube Link

To hear firsthand from Enyo Dzata, DNP, Pediatric Nurse Practitioner in Lane County, click this link.

"Our medical staff and nurses especially are great at monitoring vaccines within our pediatric population. We monitor how to get kids up to date. Exclusion Day is specific to our community to make sure that those who need the vaccines are getting them," added Dzata.

This year, local public health authorities mailed letters to families on or before Feb. 5.

Parents and caregivers seeking immunizations for their children should contact their health care provider or local health department. They may also reach 211Info by dialing 211 over the phone or going to 211info.org. No one can be turned away from a local health department because of their inability to pay for required vaccines. Many pharmacists can also immunize children 7 and older -- the Oregon Immunization Program encourages families to contact their neighborhood pharmacy for more details. Additional information on school immunizations can be found at the Immunization Program website. OHA's website also features local school vaccination data and an OIP Tableau School Immunization Dashboard

People in Oregon shared their personal stories with OHA on why adults decide to vaccinate their children:

OHA invites people to join the conversation and share why they vaccinate by using #ORVaccinates on social media.

# # #

Statewide Harm Reduction Program Gets $5.1 Million From Opioid Settlement Board -02/06/25

February 6, 2025 

Media contact: Timothy Heider, 971-246-9139, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov 

Statewide harm reduction program gets $5.1 million from Opioid Settlement Board 

PORTLAND, Ore. -- The Opioid Settlement Prevention, Treatment & Recovery Board (Board) is directing $5.1 million toward the Save Lives Oregon harm reduction clearinghouse at Oregon Health Authority. This investment serves to continue the Board's commitment to fill gaps across the substance use disorder continuum of care.

The Board recognized the importance of distributing life-saving overdose reversal medications, but also that more work remains to provide needed services to people seeking support and services for substance use disorder and overdose prevention. 

The allocation represents 22% of the Board's total allocation budget of $23.4 million for the 2025-27 fiscal biennium that begins July 1. Programs focused on primary prevention, treatment and recovery will receive similar percentages.   

The Board also provided an additional $237,000 toward a previously approved recommendation of $830,000 for the expansion of culturally specific services in existing recovery community centers throughout the state, bringing the total allocation to more than $1 million for the current fiscal biennium.   

The funding was awarded to OHA, which will administer the allocations. The Board's decision can be viewed in a recording of its Feb. 5 meeting.

We are confident that this investment will indeed save lives in Oregon by expanding our statewide capacity to provide naloxone and other live-saving services to people most in need," said Board Co-Chair Annaliese Dolph. "But, in doing so, we recognize that this is not enough, and that additional and sustained investment is urgently needed to stem the tide of substance use  disorder and overdose in Oregon. The Board calls on the Legislature to fulfill the Governor's request for ongoing funding for Save Lives Oregon." 

Since July 2021, the State of Oregon has reached agreement on national lawsuits against several companies for their roles in the opioid crisis. Through these agreements, more than $600 million will be awarded to Oregon through 2039. Settlement funds from opioid manufacturers, distributors and pharmacies are divided between the State of Oregon (45%) and local jurisdictions (55%).  

The state's share is deposited into the Opioid Settlement, Prevention, Treatment and Recovery (OSPTR) Fund as it becomes available. This fund is controlled by the 18-member OSPTR Board.  

Throughout the current fiscal biennium ending in June 2025, about $98.5 million will be deposited into the OSPTR Fund. To date, more than $90 million has been allocated.

According to the Opioid Settlement Board's annual report, published this week, Oregon allocated $74 million of the state portion of opioid settlement funds on locally based initiatives and programs across Oregon in the 2023-24 fiscal year (covering the period from July 1, 2023, through June 20, 2024).

The report showed nearly identical percentages allocated across the continuum of substance use services statewide.

Highlights of the spending this biennium include:

  • 30% ($27.7 million) for the Nine Federally Recognized Tribes of Oregon --equivalent to 30% of all funds anticipated this biennium. This 30% set-aside will continue throughout the life of the fund as additional settlement payments are deposited. 
  • 22% ($13.7 million) for the Save Lives Oregon Harm Reduction Clearinghouse to distribute naloxone and other life-saving supplies to organizations across Oregon. 
  • 22% ($13.7 million) to support primary prevention programs though counties and community based organizations, and to build up and strengthen the statewide substance use disorder prevention workforce.
  • 21% ($13.08 million) to establish recovery community centers in counties with the greatest need and expand youth and culturally specific services in existing recovery community centers. 
  • 23% ($14.3 million) to add mobile and non-mobile medication units to existing Oregon opioid treatment programs (OTPs), and for Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) to provide training and technical assistance to jails to improve access to medications for opioid use disorder.

The OSPTR Board will next consider additional investments in research and evaluation. 

To learn more about Oregon's opioid settlement funds, visit oregon.gov/opioidsettlement  

###

Cancer Survivor Advocates For Home Radon Testing -01/30/25

January 30, 2025

Media contact: Erica Heartquist, 503-871-8843, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov

Cancer survivor advocates for home radon testing

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Oregon Health Authority recognizes National Radon Action Month during January by encouraging people in the state to test their homes for radon and, if necessary, hire a professional to reduce the radon levels.

Clare Lewis, 67, of The Dalles, is advocating for home radon testing after she says radon caused her lung cancer.

"After I was diagnosed with cancer of the lung, it was totally shocking because I'm not a smoker, and I, like a lot of people, assume that most people who get lung cancer, it's as a result of smoking," Lewis says.

"But come to find out that there are other reasons people get cancer of the lungs and the second cause, the second leading cause of lung cancer, is from radon exposure. I had never even heard of radon. When I found out that this was something that could have been totally avoided, if I had known. We checked our house to see if there were high radon levels and the levels were through the roof."

To read the detailed blog and hear Lewis talk about her lung cancer and radon awareness journey, visit this link.

Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can build up in homes, and testing is the only way to know if a home has radon because it is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas.

Photo

###

New Dashboard Holds OHA Accountable To Its Ambitious 2030 Goal -01/30/25

January 30, 2025

Contact: Larry Bingham: Larry.Bingham@oha.oregon.gov; 971-239-6499

New dashboard holds OHA accountable to its ambitious 2030 goal

Data detail progress on key measures toward eliminating health inequities in Oregon

Salem, Ore.--To ensure that Oregon Health Authority (OHA) continues to make progress on its 2030 goal to eliminate health inequities in Oregon, OHA has launched an interactive dashboard to track progress toward the outcomes in the Strategic Plan launched in July of 2024. The dashboard features key metrics that, when met, will eliminate unfair barriers  to care and improve the health of all communities throughout the state.

OHA's Strategic Plan is one component of Oregon Health Forward (OHF), an alliance of three major efforts announced in December of 2024 that will collectively advance OHA's goal. These initiatives include: OHA's Strategic Plan, a statewide Call to Action to advance health for all, and an organized effort to strengthen transparency, accountability and belonging within OHA.

"This new dashboard is an important tool in our collaborative work toward eliminating health inequities in Oregon by 2030," said OHA Director Dr. Sejal Hathi, M.D., MBA. "We are not just setting ambitious goals -- we are holding ourselves accountable by showing the people of Oregon where we are now and what work we have ahead of us. The data tell us where we need to focus our attention and efforts. By making this information public and accessible, we are inviting communities and partners statewide to join us and to challenge us as we move forward together in this critical work."

The dashboard details the strategies and measures under five primary goals that serve as "pillars" toward achieving OHA's strategic plan: transforming behavioral health, strengthening access to affordable care for all, fostering healthy families and environments, achieving healthy Tribal communities, and building OHA's internal capacity and commitment to eliminate health inequities.

Additional metrics will be refined and added in the future. As OHA continues making progress toward the 2030 goal, OHA will provide updates on the other components of the Oregon Health Forward initiative.

Over the next six months, OHA's Call to Action initiative will enlist public and private partners of all sizes across all sectors to make commitments aligned with the five goal pillars of OHA's Strategic Plan. Commitments may take the form of philanthropic contributions or in-kind support -- such as staff expertise, resource-sharing, or education and training initiatives; new product development and service-line expansions; and programmatic initiatives or bold institutional policy change -- changing the way care is provided or business is done.

More information about the Call to Action, including an interest form for entities to submit proposed commitments, is available here.

The Transparency, Accountability, and Belonging Initiative (TABI) includes nearly two dozen internal projects committing to actionable steps to better meet customer needs, increase transparency, strengthen partner relationships, and enhance staff engagement and satisfaction. Examples of projects include improving responsiveness to publicinquiries, increasing the speed and transparency of funding disbursements, improving the accessibility and clarity of agency rulemaking, developing structured professional development opportunities for staff, and decreasing vacancy rates. Work for the TABI is expected to be complete by Fall 2025.

OregonHealthCare.gov Connected Nearly 140,000 People To Coverage In 2025, Strengthening Health Equity Statewide -01/30/25

January 30, 2025

Amy Coven, 503-943-0164, amy.coven@oha.oregon.gov

OregonHealthCare.gov connected nearly 140,000 people to coverage in 2025, strengthening health equity statewide

(Salem) -- In 2025, 139,688 Oregonians secured health coverage through the Oregon Health Insurance Marketplace and nearly 80% of enrollees who applied for financial assistance received aid. While slightly lower than 2024 enrollment (145,509)1, steady Marketplace enrollment year-over-year suggests Oregonians continue to prioritize and value high quality health coverage amid federal uncertainty over the future of the Affordable Care Act.

"We're thrilled to see Marketplace health coverage and financial assistance helping thousands of Oregonians get and stay covered," said director of the Oregon Health Insurance Marketplace, Chiqui Flowers. "Those who secured coverage during the open enrollment period can now either start or continue accessing the health care services they need for themselves and for their families."

Although the open enrollment period is over, the Marketplace continues to focus on addressing coverage gaps and ensuring all Oregonians can access affordable health insurance tailored to their needs.

The Marketplace encourages all individuals who have secured health coverage for 2025 to:

  • Review their health plan's network to ensure preferred doctors and clinics are covered;
  • Schedule no-cost preventive services, such as annual checkups, vaccinations, and screenings stay on top of their health; and
  • Explore additional benefits like mental health services, reproductive care, and prescription savings.

If individuals have questions about their health plan, they can reach out to their insurance company for personalized guidance.

For those who missed the open enrollment deadline, there are still opportunities to enroll. People who experience qualifying life events--such as moving, losing existing coverage, having or adopting a child, marriage, a change in citizenship, or being released from incarceration--may be eligible for a special enrollment period. Additionally, enrolled Tribal members, Alaska natives, and individuals with lower incomes can apply for health coverage year-round.

###

1Year-over-year enrollment by program

Plan year

Marketplace

Oregon Health Plan (OHP)

OHP Bridge (launched July 1, 2024)

Total

2025

139,688

1,407,452

32,239

1,579,379

2024

145,509

1,461,531

--

1,607,040

2023

141,963

1,472,420

--

1,614,383

2022

146,602

1,373,960

--

1,520,562

2021

141,089

1,162,070

--

1,303,159

2020

145,264

1,004,400

--

1,149,664

###

The Oregon Health Insurance Marketplace, a part of state government, helps people get health insurance when they do not have job-based coverage, and do not qualify for the Oregon Health Plan or another program. The Marketplace is the state-level partner to HealthCare.gov. For more information, go to OregonHealthCare.gov.

Oregon Artist Wins Second Place Nationally In Radon Awareness Poster Contest -01/23/25

January 23, 2025

Media contact: Tim Heider, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov

Oregon artist wins second place nationally in radon awareness poster contest

PORTLAND, Ore. -- January is national Radon Action Month. Students across the Northwest are encouraged to get creative to help raise awareness about the dangers of radon gas by participating in the annual Northwest Radon Poster Contest.

Oregon's first place winning poster (below) was created by 13-year-old Alexia Vallo from Medford, Ore. Alexia's poster also took second place nationwide.

Radon Poster

Alexia will receive a $300 prize from The American Lung Association.

The poster contest serves to raise awareness of harmful effects of elevated indoor radon levels and promote testing and mitigation of radon gas.

Radon is a naturally occurring, radioactive gas that can build up in homes. Both old and new housing can have radon problems. Testing is the only way to know if a home has radon because it is colorless, odorless and tasteless. Long-term radon exposure to radon is the No. 1 cause of lung cancer in nonsmokers and the second-leading cause of lung cancer in smokers. 

Youths ages 9 to 14 who live in Oregon, Idaho and Washington are eligible to participate in the radon poster contest. They must either be enrolled in a public, private, territorial, tribal, Department of Defense or home school, or be a member of a sponsoring club, such as a scouting, art, computer, science or 4-H club. Only one entry per student is allowed. Find contest submission forms and rules at the Northwest Radon Poster Contest page.

The Northwest Radon Poster Contest is sponsored by Oregon Health Authority's Radon Awareness Program, Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, Nez Perce Tribe, Spokane Tribe of Indians and Washington Department of Health's Radon Program, in collaboration with the Northwest Radon Coalition and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10.

The American Lung Association announced the national radon poster winners this week.

For more information, contact the Radon Awareness Program at radon.program@state.or.us or visit www.healthoregon.org/radon.

###

OHA Determines Most Oregon Health Care Entities Limiting Cost, But 3 Had Unreasonably High Spending 2021-22 -01/22/25

January 22, 2025

Media contact: Franny White, Franny.l.white@oha.oregon.gov, 971-349-3539 

OHA determines most Oregon health care entities limiting cost, but 3 had unreasonably high spending 2021-22 

Sustainable Health Care Cost Growth Target Program seeks to hold health care spending increases at 3.4% per person per year

SALEM, Ore. -- While most of Oregon's health insurance plans, hospital systems and medical groups successfully limited health care cost increases between 2021 and 2022, Oregon Health Authority (OHA) has determined for the first time that three health care organizations had unreasonably high cost growth.  

"Health care is increasingly and unacceptably expensive, making quality health care out of reach for many working families and straining budgets of the businesses and government agencies that pay for health insurance," said OHA Health Policy & Analytics Division Director Clare Pierce-Wrobel, M.H.A.  

"To reverse this unwelcome trend, the Oregon Legislature created OHA's Sustainable Health Care Cost Growth Target Program in 2019," Pierce-Wrobel continued. "The program's first-ever determination that a small number of health care organizations exceeded this cost growth target without an acceptable reason, along with our work to understand the factors driving health care costs statewide, is consistent with OHA's core mission to make health care affordable, accessible and equitable for everyone in Oregon." 

Each year, the Sustainable Health Care Cost Growth Target Program collects and analyzes data from health insurance companies and other sources to measure what people and organizations in Oregon collectively spend on health care. The program established its first target for health care cost growth in 2021, setting it at a 3.4% annual average increase per person. 

As noted in May 2024, when the program released its most recent annual report, OHA found 19 of Oregon's 30 health insurance plans and 29 of the state's 52 hospital systems and medical groups met the 3.4% cost growth target between 2021 and 2022. Even so, the state's total health care expenditures grew 3.6% on a per-person-per-year basis during that timeframe.  

Between July and December 2024, OHA worked with the 28 entities that went over the target to understand why they had higher spending. OHA found most had acceptable reasons, including: 

  • Increased enrollment in and use of Medicaid health coverage
  • OHA raised Medicaid behavioral health payment rates
  • Longer hospital stays because skilled nursing facilities didn't have needed capacity
  • Increased health care pay and other workforce costs
  • Some conditions are exceptionally expensive -- more than $1 million annually -- to treat
  • Increased services to meet growing community needs. 

It was also determined that the following three entities had unreasonably high health care cost growth between 2021-2022, meaning they exceeded the 3.4% target without an acceptable reason: 

  • Moda Health's Medicare Advantage insurance plans, which had an 11.6% increase. (This plan ended in December 2024 and is no longer available.)
  • UHC Company's Medicare Advantage insurance plans, which had a 6.4% increase.
  • Oregon Medical Group, a primary and specialty care clinic group based in Eugene, which had a 6.5% increase in costs for its patients with commercial health insurance. 

Starting next year, OHA will begin requiring organizations that exceed the target without an acceptable reason to submit a performance improvement plan, outlining an organization's specific proposed steps to make health care more affordable.  

OHA will report on health plan and hospital and medical group cost growth between 2022 and 2023 this May, and will begin requiring performance improvement plans for organizations that unreasonably exceed the target. If health care entities consistently fail to meet the cost growth target, OHA can administer financial penalties starting in 2026. 

The Sustainable Health Care Cost Growth Target Program is among several OHA efforts to improve health care affordability, accessibility and equity in Oregon. Others include: 

  • Encouraging the use of value-based payments, which tie the amount that providers earn to patient outcomes instead of the volume of care provided. This form of health care payment can reduce expensive emergency room visits and save patients money.
  • Limiting how much state-administered health insurance plans pay hospitals. Insurance plans administered by the Public Employee Benefits Board plan, which serves state employees, and the Oregon Educators Benefit Board, which serves the state's educators, cap how much they pay for inpatient and outpatient hospital care.
  • Increasing health insurance coverage statewide. In 2023, a record 97% of Oregonians were covered by a combination of commercial and public insurance. And in July 2024, Oregon launched a free insurance option for people who make too much to be eligible for Medicaid, but don't earn enough to easily afford insurance on their own.  

For more information, see the OHA accountabilty webpage, which includes a summary document about these cost-growth determination decisions.  

Tribes, 34 Organizations, Receive $23 Million To Support Home Repairs -01/16/25

January 16, 2025

Media Contact: Erica Heartquist, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov

Tribes, 34 organizations, receive $23 million to support home repairs

OHA’s Healthy Homes Grant Program seeks improved housing conditions, health outcomes for low-income residents to prevent displacement

PORTLAND, Ore.— Oregon Health Authority (OHA) has awarded $23 million to repair and rehabilitate homes of low-income residents to eliminate risks to residents’ health to the Nine Federally Recognized Tribes of Oregon and 34 local organizations. The funds are from the Healthy Homes Grant Program (HHGP), established to improve health by rehabilitating living environments in Oregon.

“Research has shown there is an inextricable link between a person’s health and housing status, and that quality of housing is a social determinant of health,” said Oregon Public Health Division Director Naomi Adeline-Biggs, MBBS, MPH. “With the Healthy Homes grants, Oregon is helping to prevent and reduce short- and long-term negative health outcomes by addressing the quality of housing as a public health issue.”

People living in poverty are more likely to live in substandard housing that is not healthy or safe and are at higher risk of losing homes that are not well-maintained or repaired. Older and substandard housing is more likely to contain hazards such as peeling or deteriorated lead-based paint. Delaying maintenance can lead to leaking roofs or pipes, which can cause mold. Uninsulated homes can be drafty and uncomfortable for residents and result in higher energy bills.

Homes that are not well-maintained or repaired can also lead to lead poisoning, asthma and other respiratory diseases, cancer, unintended injures, increased stress, poor school attendance for children and missed workdays for parents. Improved housing conditions for low-income families can prevent illness and reduce their health care costs, improve safety, conserve natural resources and reduce energy costs for occupants.

The organizations—nonprofits, local housing authorities, community action agencies and local governments serving communities in all areas of the state—are each receiving between $199,980 to $750,000 to use over a three-year period. The grants are intended to help homeowners and landlords repair and rehabilitate homes inhabited by low-income residents, including renters, to improve their environmental health and safety.

The Oregon Legislature established the HHGP in 2021. It directs OHA to provide grants to local organizations serving low-income residents to repair and rehabilitate homes, including rental properties, throughout the state.

Funding recipients

OHA is awarding nearly $20.4 million in HHGP funds to 34 organizations through a competitive grant process and were selected from a pool of 75 applicants. The grantees with the strongest proposals for meeting the priorities set in state law include organizations experienced in improving the health or safety of occupants of residences, maximizing energy efficiency or extending the usable life of homes which serves eligible households in Oregon; and organizations serving historically unrepresented and underserved communities, including people of color, those who are low income, and American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

In addition, OHA has set aside $3 million in HHGP funds for the Nine Federally Recognized Tribes of Oregon, honoring government-to-government relationships. OHA is working with each Tribe to award this funding.

For a video highlighting this work and to hear from recipients themselves, visit this link.

A full list of competitive grant recipients are available on the HHGP website, www.oregon.gov/healthyhomes.

Project examples

Examples of funded projects include home assessments to identify priority structural, health and safety repair needs; energy efficiency updates to protect against extreme temperatures; roof replacements; making homes less susceptible to wildfire damage; and abatement of radon, mold, mildew, and lead-based paint.

The projects will use HHGP funds to fill gaps and leverage other state and federal funding, such as Community Development Block Grants, Weatherization Assistance Program funding and the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund.

Grant funding schedule

OHA sent letters of intent to successful grant applicants in August and has been working with individual organizations to finalize grant agreements. The agency hopes to finish executing the grant agreements by the end of January. Grant recipients will have up to three years to complete their projects.

###