Governor hopeful over new Oregon health plan
mssm
SALEM (AP) —
Gov Barbara
Roberts says she’s
optimistic the Ore
gon Legislature
will find $H5 mil
lion to launch Oregon * neann care
rationing plan dospit** concerns about
funding and forcing employers to com
ply
"It is n commitment that we made to
the people of this slate that wo would
fund the Oregon health plan." the gover
nor said in an interview. "We are not
willing to walk away from this "
Oregon received the Clinton adminis
tration's blessing earlier this year for its
plan to extend Medicaid coverage to
120.000 poor people by limiting the ser
ve es pair! by the state
Sini e then, however, there's been no
agreement bv the l^tgislature to raise tax
es or fees to pav for the health plan at a
time w hen other state programs an' fai
jug budget cuts from 1000 s Measure 'i
House Majority Leader Greg Walden.
K-iiood Kiver. said resolution ol the
funding issue may Ih> stalled by disagree
ment over the way employers will hove
to offer coverage to the uninsured.
WaIdini <uiid that onu* the stain extends
coverage to the initial 120,000 low
income people, that triggers a provision
in the law requiring employers by July
1995 to provide the same pm knge of lien
i>fits to 500.000 working people who now
hove no insurance
Walden said As MX iated Oregon Indus
tries and other business groups are wor
ried because details of the 1995 employ
er mandate haven't been worked out set
"l, for one. am not ready to deal with
funding the plan until we deal with these
issues." Walden said We ought to solve
these problems before launching the pro
gram."
The governor, who lobbied intensively
for federal approval of the rationing plan,
said the business groups are getting pre
maturely alarmed over tin? employer
mandate
Many of the details about the kind of
inauranc« programs businesses will be
required to offer and other elements of
the program can he worked out in the
interim period after tin* 1993 Legislature
adjourns and in the early going of the
1995 session, she said
"We need to focus on those things that
are imminent right now and deal with
the other issue* over the longer term."
Roberts said
The Democratic governor has been
having meetings with various lawmakers
and interest groups to forge a consensus
on how to pay for the rationing program
Ideas being considered include an
income tax surcharge, a cigarette tax
increase, a special tax on health i are
providers and a boost in beer and wine
taxes
So far there's been no agreement on
any funding mechanism. Roberts said.
"We hope that within the next 10 to 12
davs we'll tie able to talk publicly about
where we am,'' Roberts said
One of the players in the behind-the
s( enes talks is the Oregon Medical Asso
ciation. representing the state's doctors.
James Carlson, a lobbyist for the OMA.
said the group hopes the discussion over
how — or whether — to pay for the health
plan will he handled separately and not
become part of the overall tax reform
debate going on in the legislature.
The House Revenue Committee is to
begin work in the coming week on try
ing to fashion come sort of tax plan to
send to voters But there's no guarantee
that the Legislature will agree to send
anything to the ballot in November or
anytime else
Carlson said the OMA is worried that
the health plan funding issue might
become mired in a dead-end discussion
of tax reform.
"There is no good reason why the Uig
isloture can't put together a funding
package for the health plan." Carlson
said "There is widespread public sup
port for this The only ingredient that's
missing right now is the political will to
do it.”
Walden said House Republicans
haven't decided yet whether to tackle
health plan funding as a separate issue or
as part of the broader tax overhaul dis
cussion.
For her part, the governor said she just
wants lawmakers to set aside SH5 million
for the program before adjourning and
that she's not that particular about how
they go atKiut doing it.
"Regardless of whether something goes
on the ballot or something does not go on
the ballot, we are looking at the options
that will fund the Oregon health plan
under either one of those scenarios."
Roberts said.
Holy melanoma! Look at changes on moles
(AP) — Despite rainy spring
weather, the sun will reappear in
Oregon, and l)r Neil Swanson
wants people to l*> prepared. The
first thing to do before applying
suntan lotion is check moles for
changes.
Early detection of malignant
melanoma — the deadliest form
of skin cancer — can mean a 05
percent chance of cure, said
Swanson, director of skin
surgery at Oregon Health Sci
ences University in Portland
Failure to catch the disease
liefore it penetrates deeper into
the skin and spreads into other
body systems means almost cer
tain death, he said
People worldwide have con
tracted the disease in ini reasing
numbers during the past 40
years, he said, noting the rate
ties doubled during the past
decade alone.
Swanson blames depletion of
the earth's ozone layer and over
exposure to the sun for the rapid
increase in malignant
melanomas.
About 30.000 people each
year are diagnosed with the dis
ease in tile United States, and at
least 0,000 people die each year,
according to the American Can
cer Society.
However. 95 percent of the
more than BOO.OOO cases of skin
cancer diagnosed nationally
each year are less dangerous
forms of the disease Basal cell
and squamous cell earners
attat k the outer layers of skin
but seldom spread to other parts
of the body or result in death
In addition to avoiding over
exposure to the sun. Swanson
advises against use of sunlamps
or tanning machines.
"Besides the health risk, the
effect of sunbathing or other
deep tanning is to destroy the
skin." Swanson said ''People
who insist on trying to maintain
a deep tan will end up looking
like prunes "
To help prevent skin cancer,
doctors recommend the "A-B-C
D" check of moles
Most normal moles appear
round or oval and have sharply
defined borders. They can Ihj
either flat or raised and appear
evenly colored, usually tan.
brown or black
By contrast, potentially malig
nant moles develop
• Asymmetry. The mole
doesn't match in shape or
appearance from one side to the
other
• Border irregularity. The
edges of the mole appear
notched, ragged or blurred.
•Color variation Pigmenta
tion is uneven and may include
a range of colors such as tan,
brown, black, red, white or blue
black.
•Diameter. The mole is larger
than six millimeters (about the
diameter of a pencil eraser) or
suddenly begins to grow and
change.
Additional warning signs of
malignant melanoma include
moles that bleed, itch or develop
a crusty surface, said Eugene
dermatologist Cynthia Dreyer.
Bone donor
gives card
to patient
ROSEBURG (AF) —
Boh Heaton got a birthday
card from a woman he
never met this year — the
woman who saved his
life.
Heaton received the
woman's bone marrow in
a transplant operation two
years ago at Seattle's
Swedish Hospital.
Heaton hud been diag
nosed with chronic myel
ogenous leukemia, a can
cer that would have killed
him unless a donor was
found.
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