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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2018
Orr: This is his
first attempt at
elected office
Continued from Page 1A
Orr ran a family law
and criminal defense prac-
tice in Astoria for about 25
years, also serving at times
as a Municipal Court judge,
before leaving to pursue art
and recycling.
He is project develop-
ment manager for Trails
End Recovery in Warrenton,
provides the company legal
counsel and plays in several
local bands.
This is Orr’s first attempt
at elected office. He has
served in appointed posi-
tions on a public safety coor-
dinating council, a commit-
tee to site the North Coast
Youth Correctional Facil-
ity in Warrenton, an afford-
able housing board in Can-
non Beach and with the Surf
Pines Homeowners Associ-
ation. He was president of
the North Coast Land Con-
servancy from 1996 to 2002.
“I think my skill set
is uniquely suited to the
demands of working in the
state Legislature,” Orr said,
describing himself as a fis-
cal conservative and social
progressive. “It looks like
the Legislature needs help
to address its funding issues
and the problems the state
is facing, both in terms of
education, housing, sustain-
able wages and family wage
jobs.”
Orr would also like to see
Oregon better utilize its nat-
ural resources, particularly
biomass energy.
He has lived in Clatsop
County about 28 years and
Oregon for 32 years. He is
from Kalamazoo, Michi-
gan, and originally moved
to Portland to attend law
school at Lewis & Clark
College.
Candidates have until
March 6 to file for the May
primary.
Roscoe: ‘I hope to
bring a more moderate
voice to the table’
Continued from Page 1A
Roscoe opened Fulio’s
Pastaria in Astoria in 2003
and sold it last year to his
longtime manager. He served
on the Astoria City Council
from 2005 until 2013, when
he was replaced by Drew
Herzig.
“In researching my deci-
sion to file for this position,
it came to my attention that
there are a wide range of
opportunities that we have
not been exploring as a com-
munity,” he said in announc-
ing his candidacy. “We seem
to get stuck on the same
issues and let them become
political footballs. I hope to
bring a more moderate voice
to the table that will allow us
to move forward past these
decisions and allow us to
grow as a region and let us
come together as a group.”
Roscoe has been a mem-
ber of the Columbia-Pacific
Economic Development Dis-
trict, the Oregon Restaurant
& Lodging Association and
the Columbia River Com-
mercial Fishing Advisory
Group.
Three of the positions on
the county commission are
up for re-election in May.
Jewell resident Susana Glad-
win has filed for District
5, held by Commissioner
Lianne Thompson. Medical
data analyst Andrew Davis
has said he will run for Dis-
trict 1 to replace Scott Lee,
the commission’s chairman,
who announced last year he
would not seek another term.
Baby Box: ‘I feel like
it’s something for our
community that bridges gaps’
Continued from Page 1A
“Finland has the low-
est infant mortality among
developed countries,” Lin-
thakhan said. “In Amer-
ica, our infant mortality is
alarming.”
Long has contacted area
social services agencies and
foster parent groups to spread
the word about the program.
Parents qualify to receive
a free box by registering with
the Baby Box organization
and watching educational
videos online at www.baby-
boxuniversity.com.
After
completing that task, they
are issued with a certificate
to print out to take into the
store at 786 State Route 101
to pick up a free box.
It comes with various
products, like diapers, wipes,
laundry detergent, baby
wash, personal hygiene prod-
ucts and diaper rash cream.
The kit provided by the box
company includes some of
these items and Long some-
times adds a few others
based on the family’s needs.
“I feel like it’s some-
thing for our community
that bridges gaps,” Long
said. “It works, especially
in our economy. It allows
new moms to have resources
that otherwise would not
be accessible. I am really
excited.”
Camden Courier-Post
Philadelphia Eagles fans climb a gate outside City Hall as fans celebrate the team’s victory in the NFL Super Bowl 52
football game between the Eagles and the New England Patriots, in downtown Philadelphia Sunday.
Philadelphia cleaning up after
some celebrations turn unruly
Eagles down
Patriots in
Super Bowl
By DAVE ZEITLIN and
KRISTEN DE GROOT
Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA — Phila-
delphia was cleaning up today
after pockets of Super Bowl
victory celebrations turned
unruly overnight, with rowdy
Eagles fans smashing depart-
ment store windows, looting a
gas station convenience store
and toppling a number of the
city’s famously greased light
poles.
The vast majority of revel-
ers celebrated peacefully, and
police made only three arrests,
said Ajeenah Amir, a spokes-
woman for Mayor Jim Kenney.
“Tens of thousands came
out and celebrated this amaz-
ing victory, and but for a hand-
ful of bad actors, the celebra-
tion was peaceful and jubilant,”
Amir said. She lauded police
for “their assistance in getting
the crowds dispersed and peo-
ple home safely.”
The victory parade is set for
Thursday, and along the parade
route, revelers can expect free
Bud Light at 25 bars, thanks to
a bet the beer maker made with
Eagles offensive tackle Lane
Johnson.
Just as Nick Foles and the
Eagles clinched a surprising
41-33 victory over the New
England Patriots in Minneap-
olis for the team’s first Super
Bowl title Sunday night, the
scene more than 1,000 miles
away in Philly was jubilation
and pandemonium.
As time expired, crowds
spilled into the streets to cel-
ebrate the Eagles’ first NFL
championship since 1960.
Revelers shot off fireworks,
drivers beeped their horns and
Philadelphians young and old
descended on Broad Street,
the main thoroughfare that last
hosted a major championship
Joe Lamberti/Camden Courier-Post
Julia Kauterman, right, and Michael Banes of Berlin, N.J., kiss on Broad Street as Eagles
fans celebrate a Super Bowl win against the New England Patriots.
parade in 2008 for the Phillies’
World Series win.
“The city deserved it,” said
66-year-old Lou Potel, who
threw a party at his home just
off Broad before joining a
much bigger party outside. “It’s
a great city, and now we have
a Super Bowl to go along with
it.”
The team was expected to
arrive at Philadelphia Interna-
tional Airport this afternoon.
Some of the pockets of
unruly fans clambered atop
the awning at the swanky Ritz
Carlton Hotel near City Hall,
jumping off into the crowd in
what one Twitter post called
“Ritz Carlton Skydiving.” The
awning later collapsed with a
large group of people on top of
it. It’s not clear if anyone was
injured.
Nearby, windows were
smashed at a Macy’s depart-
ment store and at an Old Navy
clothing store.
And apparently no amount
of grease in the world can keep
some drunken Eagles fans from
climbing poles in celebration. A
few managed to shimmy up traf-
fic lights and street sign poles.
Amir said there were reports
of some injuries from falls near
light poles but no exact num-
bers were available.
Vandals were seen having
an apparent food fight inside
a gas station’s convenience
store, yelling “Everything is
free!” and overturning a car
outside a hotel. After 1 a.m.,
the only people allowed inside
the 24-hour Wawa convenience
store near City Hall were police
officers.
Disorderly fans weren’t
only found in the Philadelphia
area.
Mourning the Patriots’ loss,
fights broke out at UMass-Am-
herst and a crowd threw objects
and set off smoke bombs and
firecrackers, campus police
said. Police used pepper balls
to disperse the crowd.
Officials in the western
Massachusetts town said those
transported to hospitals suf-
fered from head injuries, lacer-
ations and alcohol intoxication.
Police say those arrested face
criminal charges, and students
would face punishment under
the student code of conduct.
In Boston, fans inside the
Banshee Bar came to terms
with a rare loss for Tom Brady.
Some, however, took it in
stride.
“I’ve got nothing to com-
plain about,” Boston resident
Bill Crowley said. “It’s the
greatest dynasty in NFL history
and this loss tonight doesn’t
change that.
“They’ll be back,” Conor
Hobert added. “One hundred
percent, they’ll be back.”
Sam Murphy, 40, actually
made the trip from Boston to
Philadelphia, flying in Sunday
morning. The longtime Eagles
fan and Boston resident joked
he couldn’t be within 100 miles
of his home, instead decid-
ing to watch the game with his
old University of Pennsylvania
roommate.
“This is Philly at its best,”
said Murphy, as he, his former
roommate Rob Ballenger, and
hundreds of other new friends
paraded down South Street to
get to the party on Broad. “This
team is what Philly is all about.”
Associated Press writer
Mark Pratt and Ignacio
Laguarda contributed to this
report from Boston.
New report details misuse of antipsychotics in nursing homes
By DAVID CRARY
Associated Press
NEW YORK — U.S.
nursing homes have signifi-
cantly reduced the use of
powerful antipsychotic drugs
among their elderly residents,
responding to pressure from
many directions. Yet advocacy
groups insist that overmedi-
cation remains a major prob-
lem, and want the pressure to
intensify.
According to the latest data
from the federal Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Ser-
vices, known as CMS, the per-
centage of long-term nursing
home residents being given
antipsychotic drugs dropped
from about 24 percent in late
2011 to under 16 percent last
year. Decreases were reported
in all 50 states, with the big-
gest in Tennessee, California
and Arkansas.
Dr. Jerry Gurwitz, chief of
geriatric medicine at the Uni-
versity of Massachusetts Med-
ical School, depicts the overall
decrease as “one of the most
dramatic changes I’ve seen in
my career.” He wonders, how-
ever, if some nursing homes
might be finding other medica-
tions that sedate their patients
into passivity without drawing
the same level of scrutiny as
antipsychotics.
Advocacy groups —
including
the
Washing-
ton-based Center for Medicare
Advocacy and AARP Foun-
dation Litigation — say even
the lower rate of antipsychotic
usage is excessive, given fed-
eral warnings that elderly peo-
ple with dementia face a higher
risk of death when treated with
such drugs.
“Given the dire conse-
quences, it should be zero,”
said attorney Kelly Bagby of
the AARP foundation, which
has engaged in several court
cases challenging nursing
home medication practices.
Bagby contends that the drugs
are frequently used for their
sedative effect, not because
they have any benefit to the
recipients.
The advocacy groups’
long-running campaign was
reinforced Monday with the
release of a detailed report by
Human Rights Watch urging
federal and state authorities to
take tougher measures against
improper use of antipsychotic
drugs.
“On paper, nursing home
residents have strong legal
protections of their rights, but
in practice, enforcement is
often lacking,” said the report,
based on interviews with more
than 300 people and visits
to 109 nursing homes in six
states.
Ten years ago, according
to the Department of Health
and Human Services, roughly
270,000 nursing home resi-
dents suffering from dementia
were receiving antipsychotic
drugs even though such med-
ications are not approved to
treat that condition. The pow-
erful class of drugs is intended,
instead, to treat serious mental
illnesses such as schizophrenia
and bipolar disorder.
Analyzing the latest gov-
ernment data, Human Rights
Watch estimates there are now
about 179,000 people in nurs-
ing homes who get antipsy-
chotics every week without
having a diagnosis for which
the drugs are approved.
“Antipsychotic
drugs
alter consciousness and can
adversely affect an individ-
ual’s ability to interact with
others,” the new report says.
“They can also make it eas-
ier for understaffed facilities,
with direct care workers inad-
equately trained in demen-
tia care, to manage the people
who live there.”
The report also says that
nursing homes, in violation of
government regulations, often
administer antipsychotic drugs
without obtaining consent
from residents or the relatives
who represent them.
Hannah Flamm, the report’s
lead author, said the recent
data showing a decline in anti-
psychotic usage demonstrated
how extensive the overmedi-
cation problem had been. In an
interview, she said the lower
numbers don’t impress her.
“Would you want to go
into nursing home if there’s
a one in six chance you’d be
given a drug that robs you of
your ability to communicate?”
she asked. “It’s hard for me to
applaud the reduction when
it’s inexcusable to ever misuse
these drugs.”
The American Health Care
Association, which represents
more than 13,000 U.S. nurs-
ing homes, was active in the
national partnership formed
by CMS in 2012 that worked
to reduce unnecessary use of
antipsychotics.
The association’s senior
vice president for quality and
regulatory affairs, Dr. David
Gifford, said a majority of
the organization’s members
reduced usage by more than
30 percent, while some oth-
ers failed to fully embrace the
initiative.
The biggest challenge, Gif-
ford said, is to change a mind-
set among some nursing home
staff and some residents’
families that behavior aris-
ing from dementia is “abnor-
mal” and warrants the use of
antipsychotics.