Appeal Tribune Wednesday, June 21, 2017 3B
House OKs $673 million health plan fix
DIANE DIETZ
STATESMAN JOURNAL
The Oregon Health Plan is likely to
survive another two years thanks to hos-
pitals, insurance companies and a single
Medford Republican.
On a 36-to-23 vote Thursday, the Ore-
gon House approved a provider tax that
will generate $673 million in 2017-2019.
That will allow the state to maintain cov-
erage for about 378,000 Oregonians who
gained coverage under the Affordable
Care Act.
The vote is also a major step toward
closing the $1.4 billion shortfall in the up-
coming budget and moves the Legisla-
ture closer to finishing its work by the
July 10 deadline.
The measure, House Bill 2391, must
still clear the Senate with all the Demo-
crats and at least one Republican provid-
ing the three-fifths vote necessary on a
revenue measure.
That appears likely because three Re-
publican senators voted yes earlier this
week to move the bill out of committee.
They were Fred Girod, R-Stayton; Alan
DeBoer, R-Ashland; and Jackie Winters,
R-Salem.
The measure succeeded in the House
because Rep. Sal Esquivel, R-Medford,
voted with Democrats. Esquivel didn’t
speak to the bill or say why he crossed
the aisle.
Republicans urged a no vote, largely
because the Oregon Health Authority,
which manages the Oregon Health Plan,
has had problems with its computer in-
frastructure and verifying eligibility for
health plan recipients.
Republicans also have concerns
about the handling of $19 billion in state
and federal dollars that flow through its
coffers.
“Right now,” Rep. Julie Parrish, R-
West Linn said, “that agency is account-
able to no one.”
Democrats said the bill was the result
of a consensus, not only among lawmak-
ers who crafted the bill, but also hospi-
tals and insurers who worked on the pro-
posal.
Under the measure, large hospitals
will pay a 6 percent tax and small, rural
hospitals a 4 percent tax. Much of the tax
would later return to the hospitals in the
form of payments for treating health
plan patients. And this is key: The in-
crease in state spending would trigger a
match of as much as $1.9 billion from the
federal Medicaid program in the coming
biennium.
“This is a small cost to bear so that
people in this state can have health
care,” Rep. Rob Nosse, D-Portland said.
The vote was accompanied by some
political high jinks. The vote was moved
to Friday then returned to Thursday in a
matter of hours. House Speaker Tina Ko-
tek barred the chamber doors until the
matter was decided. Republicans de-
layed proceedings to caucus then at-
tempted a procedural maneuver that
could have upset the hospital provider
deal.
Tick-caused Lyme disease is up in Oregon
ZACH URNESS
STATESMAN JOURNAL
On the East Coast and Midwest, public
health officials are bracing for what
they’re calling the “worst season ever
for tick borne diseases.”
Lyme disease, a debilitating infection
carried by deer ticks, is expected to
reach an all-time high this summer in
parts of the country, according to the
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
The same concern hasn’t been raised
in Oregon. A normal winter and spring
means tick populations aren’t expected
to skyrocket, officials said.
The number of Lyme disease cases
has grown in Oregon — doubling to al-
most 40 to 50 cases per year from 2008 to
2015 — but it still remains far below the
national average.
Still, the disease is making inroads in
Oregon and could expand in the future.
“There has been an expansion of deer
ticks throughout the United States, and
into Oregon,” said Emilio DeBess, state
public health veterinarian. “We’re see-
ing deer ticks places we’d never seen
them before.”
The difference in Oregon, DeBess
said, is that a lower number of West
Coast deer ticks are infected with the
bacteria that causes Lyme disease.
“On the East Coast, up to 60 percent of
deer ticks test positive for Lyme dis-
ease,” he said. “In Oregon, it’s closer to 3
to 4 percent.”
VIKTORCAP, GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO
A deer tick carries Lyme disease.
The heaviest concentration of deer
ticks in Oregon is west of the cascades
and along Columbia River at elevations
below 1,200 feet, DeBess said, including
the Hood River area.
While cases of Lyme disease are low
in Oregon compared to the nationwide
average, the disease remains life-alter-
ing and hard to detect.
DeBess said prevention was the key
to preventing Lyme disease. Here’s sug-
gestions on avoiding ticks.
Tick protection
Avoid Direct Contact with Ticks
Avoid wooded and brushy areas with
high grass and leaf litter.
Walk in the center of trails.
Repel Ticks on Skin and Clothing
Use repellent that contains 20 percent
or more DEET, picaridin, or IR3535 on
exposed skin for protection that lasts
several hours.
Always follow product instructions.
Parents should apply this product to
their children, avoiding hands, eyes, and
mouth.
Use products that contain permethrin
on clothing. Treat clothing and gear, such
as boots, pants, socks and tents with
products containing 0.5% permethrin. It
remains protective through several
washings. Pre-treated clothing is avail-
able and may be protective longer.
The Environmental Protection Agen-
cy (EPA) has an online tool to help you se-
lect the repellent that is best for you and
your family.
Find and Remove Ticks from Your
Body
Bathe or shower as soon as possible
after coming indoors (preferably within
two hours) to wash off and more easily
find ticks that are crawling on you.
Conduct a full-body tick check using a
hand-held or full-length mirror to view
all parts of your body upon return from
tick-infested areas. Parents should
check their children for ticks under the
arms, in and around the ears, inside the
belly button, behind the knees, between
the legs, around the waist, and especially
in their hair.
Examine gear and pets. Ticks can ride
into the home on clothing and pets, then
attach to a person later, so carefully ex-
amine pets, coats, and day packs.
Tumble dry clothes in a dryer on high
heat for 10 minutes to kill ticks on dry
clothing after you come indoors.
If the clothes are damp, additional
time may be needed.
If the clothes require washing first,
hot water is recommended. Cold and me-
dium temperature water will not kill
ticks effectively. If the clothes cannot be
washed in hot water, tumble dry on low
heat for 90 minutes or high heat for 60
minutes. The clothes should be warm
and completely dry.
Zach Urness has been an outdoors
writer, photographer and videographer
in Oregon for nine years. He is the author
of the book “Hiking Southern Oregon”
and
can
be
reached
at
zurness@StatesmanJournal.com
or
(503) 399-6801. Find him on Twitter at
@ZachsORoutdoors.
Oregon mosquitoes being tested for Zika virus
ZACH URNESS
STATESMAN JOURNAL
The Zika virus didn’t make a big im-
pact on Oregon last year, even as the dis-
ease spread across multiple countries
and became a worldwide health concern
in 2016.
Fifty-one Oregonians were infected
with the virus last year — all in travel-
related incidents — and all recovered,
according to officials.
But that doesn’t mean officials are
taking chances. Oregon will attempt to
trap and test mosquitoes for the Zika vi-
rus all summer, said Emilio DeBess,
state public health veterinarian.
“Historically, we have not been an
area the mosquitos that carry the virus
(would be in),” DeBess said. “But our cli-
mate is changing, so we have to expect
the unexpected. We got funding from
CDC to find out if the mosquitoes respon-
sible for Zika virus transmission are pre-
sent here in Oregon.”
The testing is taking place in locations
around Portland, Medford, Klamath
Falls and across Eastern Oregon, De-
Bess said. He said they’d start to get re-
sults around July.
“These mosquitoes tend to like warm-
er weather,” he said. “The traps are set
up, but probably we will not have infor-
mation until July when we have a good
idea if they are here or not.”
While DeBess stressed there wasn’t a
major concern, he said he wouldn’t rule
anything out.
“There’s always potential based on a
changing climate that new mosquitoes
get introduced, get a foothold in and end
up staying,” he said.
Zach Urness has been an outdoors
writer, photographer and videographer
in Oregon for eight years. He is the author
of the book “Hiking Southern Oregon”
and
can
be
reached
at
zurness@StatesmanJournal.com
or
(503) 399-6801. Find him on Twitter at
@ZachsORoutdoors.
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