A7
THE ASTORIAN • THuRSdAy, July 25, 2019
Senators offer compromise to
reduce prescription drug costs
OBITUARIES
Eila Anna-Liisa Rahkola
Astoria
Dec. 27, 1934 — July 21, 2019
Eila Anna-Liisa Rahkola, 84, passed away with her husband to do some traveling.
peacefully on July 21, 2019, of complica-
Eila was a member of Peace Lutheran
tions from Parkinson’s disease.
Church and the Finnish Brotherhood. Her
She was born Dec. 27, 1934,
greatest joy was welcoming new
to Anna Vilhemiina Piukkala in
babies into the family; she had a
Pyhajoki, Finland. She graduated
special gift for calming them. She
from high school and continued in
was loved by many, and will be
home economic school, where she
missed.
would learn skills that served her
Eila was preceded in death by
family all their lives.
her husband, Antti, and her son,
Eila married Antti Rahkola in a
Thomas Allan, and granddaughter,
beautiful outdoor wedding on June
Grace.
20, 1954, in Kalajoki, Finland. The
She is survived by her children,
young couple saw opportunity in
Anne (Rick) Stickel, Marjo Dun-
Eila Rahkola
agan, Anita (Jyrki) Talus, Karin
the U.S., where relatives lived in
(Bob) Blair, Allan Rahkola and
Esko, Minnesota. They moved
there in 1958 with two little children, and one Tina (Tom) Lips; grandchildren, Griffin,
Johanna, Stan, Raija, Pete, Anna, Max, Edie,
on the way.
As the family grew, Eila used her many Mackenzie, Maggie, Lillie, Victoria, Ryan
skills to care for her household. She sewed, and Evan; great-granchildren, Ashley, Brock,
knitted, cooked everything from scratch Henri, Eila, Brooklyn, Greta, Iris and Zoey;
and was an exceptional baker. A decision to and one great-great-granddaughter, Rilee.
move to Astoria came after a visit to see rela-
A special thank you to the Astor Place and
tives. Eila and Antti packed their belongings, all staff members there for the great care they
five children and Mummo, Eila’s mother, to gave our mother.
arrive Astoria in July 1969.
A private graveside service will be held.
The beautiful surroundings, good fishing
The family invites anyone who knew Eila
and Finnish community made Astoria the to join us at Peace Lutheran Church, 565
perfect place to raise a family. So perfect, 12th St., Astoria, Oregon, for a reception on
cousins from Finland arrived in 1971. The Saturday, July 27, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Vedenojas lived with the Rahkola family, 18
Donations can be made in Eila’s memory
people, for six months.
to Peace Lutheran Church.
After the children were grown, Eila
Caldwell’s Luce-Layton Mortuary is in
worked in the kitchen at the high school, her charge of the arrangements. Please sign the
first job outside her home. She retired along online guest book at caldwellsmortuary.com
Raymond Alfie Freel
Astoria
May 26, 1954 — July 21, 2019
Raymond Alfie Freel, 65, of Astoria, in his shop, and working on his 1959 GMC
Oregon, passed away peacefully at home pickup.
on July 21, 2019, surrounded by his wife,
Ray is survived my his wife of 46 years,
Mary, his brother, Rodger, and his
Mary, of Astoria; his twin brother,
two dogs, Lincoln and Logan.
Rodger (Janette) Freel, of Mon-
tesano, Washington; sister Trinda
Ray was born in Coos Bay,
Oregon, to A.V. “Bud” and Clari-
(Dan) Bogh, of Warrenton, Ore-
gon; his hunting partner and
anna “Connie” Freel. He spent the
cousin, Jerry (Brigette) Hampel
early part of his life in Charleston,
and cousin Jack (DeeDee) Ham-
Oregon, then moved to the War-
pel, all of Coos Bay, Oregon; his
renton area in 1965. He graduated
brother-in-law, Bob (Sherry) Mul-
from Warrenton High School in
lins, and sisters-in-law, Alice Wil-
1972.
son and Linda (Doug) Flesey, all
Ray married the love of his
life, Mary Mullins, in 1973, then
Raymond Freel
of Astoria; numerous nephews,
moved to Astoria in 1975, where
nieces and cousins; his beloved
he lived until his death. He loved taking his hunting companions, his dogs, Lincoln and
dogs pheasant hunting in Eastern Oregon Logan, and his two miniature horses, Wan-
each year, and sitting in the pasture where nabe and Beemer; and many friends from
he would feed his two miniature horses his life working on tugboats.
A special thanks to Lower Columbia
apples.
Ray began his towboat career with Hospice and the wonderful nurses for the
Umpqua River Navigation in 1972, then care they provided, and the concern they
Knappton Towboat Co., now known as Foss showed during the last month of his life.
Maritime, in 1974, where he worked until
In lieu of flowers, the family requests
2013. In May 2018, he retired from Dun- memorial donations be made to the charity
lap Towing of Everett, Washington. Ray ran of one’s choice.
tugs from the Arctic Circle to Mexico, and
A celebration of life will be determined
on the East Coast. During those years he at a later date.
passed on his vast knowledge to many new
Caldwells Luce-Layton Mortuary is in
mariners.
charge of the arrangements. Please sign our
Ray loved working with wood and metal online guest book at caldwellsmortuary. com
Wyden, colleague say bill
would limit copays
By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Two veteran sena-
tors — a Republican and a Democrat —
unveiled compromise legislation Tuesday
to reduce prescription drug costs for mil-
lions of Medicare recipients, while sav-
ing money for federal and state health care
programs serving seniors and low-income
people.
Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley and
Oregon Democrat Ron Wyden said the bill
would for the first time limit drug copays
for people with Medicare’s “Part D” pre-
scription plan, by capping patients’ out-
of-pocket costs at $3,100 a year starting in
2022. They’re hoping to have it ready soon
for votes on the Senate floor.
The legislation would also require
drugmakers to pay a price-hike penalty to
Medicare if the cost of their medications
goes up faster than inflation. Drugs pur-
chased through a pharmacy as well as those
administered in doctors’ offices would be
covered by the new inflation rebates.
Political compromises over health
care are rare these days. The bill reflects
efforts by lawmakers of both parties to
move beyond the rancorous debates over
the Obama-era Affordable Care Act and
focus on ways to lower costs for people
with health insurance. Separate legisla-
tion to address “surprise medical bills” has
already cleared the Senate Health, Educa-
tion, Labor and Pensions committee.
The senators said preliminary estimates
from the Congressional Budget Office
show that the Medicare program would
save $85 billion over 10 years, while
seniors would save $27 billion in out-of-
pocket costs over the same period, and $5
billion from slightly lower premiums. The
government would save $15 billion from
projected Medicaid costs.
CBO also projected that Medicare’s
inflation rebate would have ripple effects,
leading to prescription drug savings for pri-
vate insurance plans sponsored by employ-
ers or purchased directly by consumers.
The senators announced a Thursday vote
on the package by the Finance Commit-
tee, which oversees Medicare and Medic-
aid. Grassley is the panel’s chairman, while
Wyden serves as the senior Democrat.
“Pharmaceutical companies play a vital
role in creating new and innovative med-
icines that save and improve the qual-
ity of millions of American lives, but that
doesn’t help Americans who can’t afford
them,” Grassley and Wyden said in a joint
CLATSOP
POWER
Raymond Cecil Strobel
EQUIPMENT , INC.
Warrenton
May 30, 1930 — July 21, 2019
Raymond Cecil “Ray” Strobel was born
in Hatton, Saskatchewan, Canada, to Marie
and John Strobel. He moved to the U.S. as a
young boy, and grew up in the Astoria area.
He enlisted in the Army in 1951, served
in Korea, and was honorably discharged in
1956.
Ray married Carolyn Wiley on Dec. 5,
1970. Together they raised three children
in Warrenton. He worked for the Ameri-
can Can Co. until his retirement, when the
company closed down. He went into long-
haul trucking, and as the owner/operator he
would take Carol along, and they traveled
the U.S. together.
He loved to fish and hunt, and he devoted
himself to Clatsop Post 12 American Legion
in Astoria until his death.
Ray is survived by three children, Ron
(Karla) Fortelney, Joanne (Butch) Johnson
and Brenda Marugg; seven grandchildren;
and 20 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his par-
ents; his wife, Carolyn; and his sister, Alice
Schmitz.
A memorial service will be held on Satur-
day, July 27, 2019, at 1 p.m., at Clatsop Post
12 American Legion in Astoria, Oregon.
Please visit hughes-ransom.com to sign
the online guest book.
SEVENDAY FORECAST FOR ASTORIA
TODAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
statement. “This legislation shows that no
industry is above accountability.”
The White House encouraged the Sen-
ate negotiations, and spokesman Judd
Deere said the Trump administration
stands ready to “work with senators to
ensure this proposal moves forward and
advances the president’s priority of lower-
ing drug prices.”
Democrats controlling the House want
to go further by granting Medicare legal
authority to directly negotiate prices with
pharmaceutical companies. Direct negotia-
tions are seen as a nonstarter in the Repub-
lican-controlled Senate, but the bill’s drug
price inflation penalty may yet find support
among Democrats in the House.
Grassley’s office said the bill will force
drugmakers and insurers to take greater
responsibility for keeping Medicare pre-
scription prices in line, instead of foisting
increases on taxpayers and beneficiaries.
The lack of a cap on out-of-pocket costs
for Medicare’s popular prescription benefit
has left some beneficiaries with bills rival-
ing a mortgage payment. That’s because
with Medicare’s current protection for cat-
astrophic costs, patients taking very expen-
sive drugs are still responsible for 5% of
the cost, with no dollar limit on what they
pay. For example, 5% of a drug that costs
$200,000 a year works out to $10,000.
The Grassley-Wyden bill does not
directly address the problem of high launch
prices for new medications, but its inflation
rebates could put the brakes on price hikes
for mainstay drugs such as insulin.
The bill drew a rebuke from the phar-
maceutical industry, while AARP praised
Grassley and Wyden.
Other provisions of the legislation
would:
• Change an arcane Medicaid payment
formula through which drugmakers can
avoid paying rebates on certain drugs,
depending on fluctuations in prices.
• Allow state Medicaid programs to
pay for expensive gene therapy treatments
on the installment plan, spreading out the
costs over several years.
• Require drugmakers to provide pub-
lic justification for new high cost drugs
or steep hikes in the prices of existing
medications.
• Require middlemen known as phar-
macy benefit managers to disclose details
of the discounts they are negotiating and
how much they are passing on to consum-
ers. The benefit managers negotiate with
pharmaceutical companies on behalf of
insurers and consumers.
• Provide doctors with new computer
tools they can use to estimate out-of-
pocket medication costs for patients with
Medicare.
SALES • SERVICE • RENTALS
34912 HWY 101 BUS • ASTORIA
503-325-0792 • 1-800-220-0792
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
REGIONAL FORECAST
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
Seattle
73 55
Sunny and
pleasant
71 60
Partly sunny
and nice
71 57
70 58
69 57
70 57
Clearing
Mostly sunny
and nice
Clouds and
sunshine
Abundant
sunshine
69 57
Mostly sunny
Aberdeen
Olympia
75/57
81/59
Wenatchee
Tacoma
Moses
Lake
83/53
ALMANAC
UNDER THE SKY
TODAY'S TIDES
Astoria through Tuesday
Tonight’s Sky: Moon at last
quarter (6:18 p.m.)
Astoria / Port Docks
Temperatures
High/low ................................ 67/55
Normal high/low .................. 68/54
Record high .................. 91 in 1924
Record low .................... 44 in 1977
Precipitation
Tuesday ................................... 0.02”
Month to date ........................ 1.53”
Normal month to date ......... 0.83”
Year to date .......................... 24.40”
Normal year to date ........... 36.74”
Forecasts and graphics provided by
AccuWeather, Inc. ©2019
Time
7:57 a.m.
8:00 p.m.
5.1 2:06 a.m.
7.1 1:35 p.m.
Cape Disappointment
7:23 a.m.
7:51 p.m.
Source: Jim Todd, OMSI
Hammond
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today .................. 5:49 a.m.
Sunset tonight ............... 8:55 p.m.
Moonrise today ........... 12:47 a.m.
Moonset today .............. 2:33 p.m.
Last
New
First
Full
7:43 a.m.
7:59 p.m.
Warrenton
7:52 a.m.
7:55 p.m.
Knappa
8:34 a.m.
8:37 p.m.
Depoe Bay
July 24 July 31 Aug 7 Aug 15
6:47 a.m.
7:04 p.m.
1.7
2.0
4.7 1:28 a.m.
6.7 1:00 p.m.
1.7
2.0
5.3 1:46 a.m.
7.3 1:18 p.m.
1.9
2.1
5.5 1:50 a.m.
7.5 1:19 p.m.
1.8
2.0
5.4 3:07 a.m.
7.4 2:36 p.m.
1.5
1.7
5.1 1:00 a.m. 2.1
7.2 12:23 p.m. 2.3
City
Atlanta
Boston
Chicago
Dallas
Denver
Honolulu
Houston
Los Angeles
Miami
New York City
Phoenix
San Francisco
Wash., DC
Today
Hi/Lo/W
87/68/s
80/66/s
84/65/s
89/69/s
88/62/pc
90/78/s
91/69/s
89/68/pc
91/78/t
83/70/s
107/90/pc
73/58/pc
86/68/s
Fri.
Hi/Lo/W
87/68/pc
83/69/s
88/67/s
91/72/pc
94/66/s
89/78/pc
92/73/t
88/66/s
92/80/t
85/72/s
110/90/s
74/56/pc
88/70/s
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy,
c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms,
r-rain, sf-snow fl urries, sn-snow, i-ice.
91/61
Hermiston
The Dalles 94/57
Enterprise
Pendleton 85/52
91/58
93/62
La Grande
88/53
89/57
NATIONAL CITIES
High (ft.) Time Low (ft.)
83/50
Kennewick Walla Walla
91/64 Lewiston
92/56
84/57
Salem
Pullman
91/57
Longview
73/55 Portland
88/61
84/58
Yakima 91/58
83/54
Astoria
Spokane
88/62
Corvallis
90/57
Albany
89/57
John Day
Eugene
Bend
91/58
89/54
92/57
Ontario
97/65
Caldwell
Burns
92/55
95/62
Medford
97/66
Klamath Falls
91/54
City
Baker City
Brookings
Ilwaco
Newberg
Newport
Today
Hi/Lo/W
91/48/s
73/54/s
70/58/s
88/57/s
67/53/s
Fri.
Hi/Lo/W
93/55/pc
71/58/s
69/60/pc
89/58/s
67/57/pc
City
North Bend
Roseburg
Seaside
Springfi eld
Vancouver
Today
Hi/Lo/W
70/56/s
93/60/s
72/57/s
90/56/s
86/60/s
Fri.
Hi/Lo/W
69/59/pc
90/60/s
71/60/pc
90/56/s
87/61/s