Opinion
4A
Saturday, October 3, 2020
My Voice
Eastern Oregon
residents need
Measure 110
A
s a lifelong resident of rural Oregon, I know
all too well how many people in our region are
affected by drug addiction. Addiction knows no
bounds and strikes people regardless of where they live,
their age, background or community status.
It’s not just our community. In fact, one in 10 Orego-
nians is addicted to drugs and one to two people die daily
in our state due to an overdose.
This is why I am a strong supporter of Measure 110. We
in Eastern Oregon particularly are in dire need of expanded
services for addiction recovery. This measure would pro-
vide that. It will greatly expand access to drug treatment
and recovery services throughout the state. Anyone who
wants services
will be able to
get them, not
CAMI BEAN
just those who
FAMILY NURSE
have the funds
PRACTITIONER
or the “right”
insurance.
Throughout my life, I’ve known many people struggling
with substance use disorders — adolescents, family, friends
and neighbors. Resources for recovery for far too many
people didn’t exist or were inaccessible. I’ve attended more
than my share of funerals due to drug overdoses that could,
and should, have been prevented.
Now that I am a family nurse practitioner, I’ve seen
patients held in the same grip of drugs.
One of the things many people struggling with addic-
tion have in common is a desire to break the cycle, yet they
don’t know where to turn, and neither do many of those to
whom they turn for help.
I’ve dealt with this fi rsthand as a health care provider,
seeking access to recovery for patients ready to beat their
addiction. Finding a spot in a drug treatment program
immediately is next to impossible. It doesn’t help that
Oregon ranks nearly last of all states in the availability of
drug treatment. Wait lists often are weeks — and some-
times months — long.
When people with addiction must wait, many revert to
problematic drug use. The longer the wait, the more at-risk
they are of overdosing. When people know how scarce
resources are, many choose to not seek help at all. Others
can’t bear the shame the senseless stigma of addiction
carries.
However, by voting “YES” on Measure 110 on Nov. 3
we fi nally can change this for the better. This proposal will
not legalize any drugs. Rather, it greatly expands access to
drug treatment and recovery services for those who want
and need them—without creating any new taxes. It’ll be
paid for with existing marijuana tax money.
Changing our approach to addiction and treating it as
a health issue is long overdue. We need Measure 110 now.
The way we treat addiction has put people in a position of
worrying about being arrested when coming forward for
help. Even a misdemeanor charge for low-level possession
of drugs can result in a criminal record that ruins lives.
The criminal records people with addictions are saddled
with create new barriers to housing, jobs, student loans,
professional licenses and more. Jailing people for an addic-
tion derails access to recovery and other health care ser-
vices, rips families apart, and makes it harder for them
to get their lives on track. Evidence shows that criminal
charges for addiction related crimes have done nothing
to solve the addiction crisis we are facing.
This practice is cruel and ineffective. Measure 110
provides an effective, humane approach to addiction by
providing access to treatment and recovery services,
housing and other supportive services.
Without Measure 110, it’s a truly heart-breaking sit-
uation for me as a provider, my patients and their loved
ones. The last thing I want as a care provider is to not
be able to connect patients with the resources they need
when they are ready.
Nov. 3 is our opportunity to say “enough is enough”
and take a stand to decriminalize addiction and treat
it as a health issue, best managed by health care
professionals.
About the Author
Cami Bean of La Grande is a registered nurse in
Oregon and a family nurse practitioner.
Other Views
A fall update from Eastern Oregon University
E
astern Oregon University is
excited to wwelcome students
back to our campus and com-
munity for fall term. With gratitude
for the incredible work of so many
colleagues and partners, we share an
update on EOU’s La Grande campus
resumption activities for the new aca-
demic year.
Six months ago, the global
COVID-19 pandemic dispersed our
main campus community as we
moved to remote learning to decrease
exposure. Faculty, students, staff and
partners of EOU responded to this
new reality by innovating and impro-
vising to ensure students were able to
continue their educational journeys
from a distance. With grit and deter-
mination our students, faculty and
staff made the best of a challenging
situation.
Well before the conclusion of the
spring term, EOU embarked on its
resumption plan for the 2020 aca-
demic year. A pioneer in distance
and online education, EOU has a
great deal of expertise in providing
a quality education leveraging state-
of-the-art delivery technology. How-
ever, students who choose to attend
EOU at our campus in La Grande do
so for the experiences, relationships
and co-curricular activities that are
offered through in-person instruction
and interaction.
Ultimately, our mission calls us
back to provide campus-based edu-
cation and programs that students
need and desire. At EOU, we con-
fronted the Great Depression soon
after our founding, and during World
War II we modifi ed operations to edu-
cate soldiers. Today we face a global
pandemic, and as in the past we are
well-equipped to adapt, innovate and
respond creatively to continue serving
our students and this region. Our
on-campus resumption is not the easy
RICHARD
CHAVES
TOM INSKO
EOU PRESIDENT
path. It is the necessary one.
After months of thoughtful plan-
ning and expansive consideration, we
are resuming on-campus instruction.
No single path or solution will meet
the needs of all, so the guiding themes
of safety, wellness, equity, collabora-
tion, fl exibility and innovation provide
the necessary balance for effective
resumption.
For fall term, approximately half
of EOU’s on-campus courses are
in-person, and the rest in hybrid or
remote modalities. When determining
instruction modality, college deans
and faculty worked to ensure educa-
tional quality while mitigating virus
exposure risk.
Support services like tutoring,
career and internship assistance,
advising, fi nancial aid, student
health and the library are providing
resources remotely and in-person with
safety measures. Student clubs, cul-
tural events and campus life look dif-
ferent this fall, but they will remain a
vital part of the EOU experience. Ath-
letic schedules and events have been
modifi ed to reduce risk while pre-
serving the student-athlete experience.
One example of this is the postpone-
ment of fall sports competitions to
early next year to reduce potential dis-
ruption to campus instruction due to a
COVID-19 outbreak.
Instructors and mentors respond
and inspire through a face covering
or across a video screen. Reference
texts and computer labs, regularly
sterilized, help refi ne understanding.
Friends in clubs, classes and residence
halls, smiling behind a face covering,
EOU BOARD CHAIRMAN
remind each student that they belong
in our community.
Society teaches us to individually
control our world and our destinies.
But this pandemic reminds us how
interdependent we really are — our
wellness and progress are inextricably
linked to our shared behaviors and
collective ability to mitigate the risk of
spreading COVID-19.
Consequently, every student
engaging in a class or activity on
EOU’s campus was tested upon their
arrival to our community. This step
was taken to reduce the chances of
students unknowingly transferring the
virus from their home community to
La Grande.
EOU’s La Grande campus resump-
tion will not be without challenges
and we fully expect to experience
COVID-19 cases. But we are well-
equipped to respond appropriately as
circumstances arise. EOU has endeav-
ored to add resources, implement
safety protocols and develop incident
response procedures to provide for the
safety of all.
Alongside our region, we are
testing our strength to reorganize,
reimagine and rebound. This year
will be like no other as we work to
adapt and respond to the dynamic
environment created by COVID-19.
We welcome our returning and new
Mountaineers, and together we will
overcome the challenges we face.
About the Authors
Tom Insko is president of Eastern
Oregon University, and Richard
Chaves is chairman of the EOU Board
of Directors.
Letters
Diversity of views strengthens
our democracy
I was appalled and saddened by the
theft and vandalism of Mr. Gary Graham’s
political sign in Union. The eighth com-
mandment in the Bible states “thou shalt
not steal.” The Constitution of our United
States gives us the right to free speech. We
as a community need to condemn any acts
intended to repress our neighbors’ expres-
sion of their views, whether or not we agree
with them.
The beauty and strength of our democ-
racy comes with embracing a diversity of
views. This is what gives us varied ideas on
how to solve our community’s, our nation’s
and our world’s problems. I shudder to
think that some people want to suppress,
steal or burn my or my neighbor’s opinions.
Before you try to shut down someone’s
speech, think about if you want our country
to become like North Korea, Russia or
China, where citizens are jailed or killed
for expressing opposing views. A better
option for all of us is to actually talk to our
neighbors, have a respectful debate and be
sure that we vote.
Corrine Dutto
La Grande
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