w Fortiani» (Obstruer
December 4, 2013
IN S ID E
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Frigid Cold Expected to Last
O pinion
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E ntertainment G uide
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Portland area residents are
bracing for som e very cold
w eather.
Temperatures were expected
to dip into the low 20s and high
teens over the next few days
with a chance of snow starting
Thursday night and continuing
with a chance of snow through
the weekend. A frigid wind chill
is also expected over the Port
land area for the next few days
as the arctic front moved into the
Pacific Northwest.
In re sp o n se to the cold
weather, an emergency shelter
for youth, families and single
ad u lts w ill be av a ila b le at
Portland's Union Gospel Mis
sion.
L o cated at 15 N .W . 3rd
Ave., the shelter will open at
9:30 each night and close at 6
a.m. each morning.
O ther seasonal shelters will
be open as usual regardless of
the tem perature. For the loca
tion o f shelters in the Portland
a re a , d ia l 211 o r v is it
21 linfo.org.
Cover Oregon Switches Executives
METRO»
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IMUIUSHIM
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C lassifieds
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C alendar
F o o d
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Insurance
exchange
enrolls first
applicants
C over O regon announced
Monday that it has enrolled 3,470
Oregonians in health insurance
to date and are moving forward
quickly to ensure that all com
pleted applications received by
Dec. 4 will be processed in time
for coverage to start by Jan. 1.
Also Monday, Cover Oregon
Executive Director Rocky King
requested permission from the
Board of Directors to take a
three-month medical leave of
absence effective Tuesday, due
to issues related to a previously
diagnosed medical condition. The
Cover Oregon Board will begin
conducting a swift search for an
in te rim e x e c u tiv e d ire c to r
through King’s medical leave of
absence. During that search, Dr.
Bruce Goldberg will serve as
acting Cover Oregon Executive
Director.
“We are starting to see en
rollm ents and are gaining mo-
Dr. Bruce Goldberg
We are starting to
see enrollments and
are gaining
momentum. I am
confident we are on
the right track to get
people the health
coverage they need.
- Executive Director Rocky King
m entum. I am confident we
are on the right track to get
people the health coverage
they need. W hile our w ork is
not done, I had to make the
difficult decision to focus on
my health now so that I can get
better. I know that the Board
and Dr. G oldberg will keep
things moving forw ard in my
absence,” said King.
O f the first 3,470 Oregonians
enrolled through Cover Oregon,,
219 Oregonians enrolled in a
private plan and 3,251 enrolled in
Oregon Health Plan. Cover Or
egon has received in total more
than 54,000applications received
so far and staff are working to
get those applications processed
as quickly as possible.
People eligible for private
plans will receive an enrollment
packet in the mail, with instruc
tions on how to select a plan, and
they need to return that packet
no later than Dec. 15 for cover
age effective Jan. 1,2014. Those
eligible for the Oregon Health
Plan will be automatically en
rolled in coverage.
There are many ways to get help
completing an application or enroll
ing in a health insurance plan. Resi
dents can go to CoverOregon.com
and find a certified community part
ner or insurance agent or call 1-855-
CoverOR. To date, Cover Oregon
has received nearly 890.000 hits on
the CoverOregon.com website and
more than 50,000 calls to the service
center.
Backpack Lunch Program Needs Help
The Northeast Backpack Lunch Program,
which provides weekend meals for more than
150 needy children at Woodlawn, Scott and King
schools, seeks turkeys and hams to donate to the
families of these children for the holidays.
Now in its fifth year, the program puts two
lunches in the backpacks of children at risk of
hunger every week of the year to ensure they will
have som ething to eat on S aturdays and
Sundays.
During December, the group wants to add to
the gift. If you are interested in donating a turkey
or ham, or would like to make a cash contribution,
please contact Alan Silver at Fremont United
Methodist Church, the sponsoring organization.
The church's telephone number is 503-284-4647.