Page 8A
OFF PAGE ONE
East Oregonian
Thursday, June 15, 2017
CLINIC: Insurance utilization rate Reports say Mueller probe now
plummeted from 163 to 73 percent examining possible obstruction
Continued from 1A
“Your
problem
is
really two-fold,” she told
her husband. “You need
education, but you also need
people to be motivated.
They need to have skin in
the game.”
Why not bring health
care in house? Hire a doctor
to examine employees and
a nurse to shepherd them as
they make healthy changes.
Charge $75 per month for
a previously free program,
then waive fees depending
on participation in a well-
ness program. It was an
intriguing idea.
Nerenberg hired Rhon-
da’s employer, Dr. Russell
Harrison,
to
provide
in-house medical care. He,
or physician’s assistant
Erika Acuna, come once a
week to an exam room set
up in the building. Neren-
berg convinced his nurse/
nutritionist wife to accept
the job of counseling and
cajoling the workers on
their path to better health.
She meets with each
employee to set up a health
plan checks in quarterly.
She meets with workers
whenever they have ques-
tions.
Fast forward 17 months
and the change is stunning.
The company’s insurance
utilization rate plummeted
from 163 percent to 73
percent. Billy Nerenberg
said the workers are healthier
and more productive. Aetna
currently provides health
insurance for Cayuse, but
other insurance companies
have also indicated interest.
“We are now a very
desirable company to work
with,” he said.
Employee Richard Retig
admits he was slow to
embrace the program, but
eventually went all in. The
56-year-old took medication
for type 2 diabetes, drank
multiple cans of soda each
day and fought a losing
battle with the scales. His
energy was low and his
blood sugar level seemed to
be on an elevator ride to the
penthouse.
“It was going up and up
and up,” Retig said.
When Dr. Harrison
recommended insulin for
the diabetes, it jolted Retig.
“Employees tell me their lives were
saved. Cancer was spotted. Diabet-
ics are no longer on medication.”
— Billy Nerenberg, Cayuse Technologies CEO
He met with Rhonda to
formulate a plan to improve
his health. He traded soda
for water, stopped eating
carbohydrates and started
consuming more vegetables.
His blood sugar dropped
dramatically,
forestalling
the need for insulin. He lost
39 pounds in two months
and says he now has energy
to spare.
“In the morning, I pop up
out of bed,” Retig said.
Jackie Lindsay is another
success story. Before the
program, Lindsay struggled
with borderline diabetes,
chronic migraines, allergies,
asthma and stomach prob-
lems. After a liver detox and
dietary changes, her blood
sugar fell and her other
problems faded.
“My energy levels are
crazy high,” she said.
“Before, I lay around
the house on weekends,
sleeping until 10 or 11.
Now, I can’t sleep past 8.”
Another
employee
was on the verge of being
terminated for repeatedly
falling asleep at his desk. To
eliminate physical reasons,
Billy Nerenberg sent him
to Rhonda. The employee’s
blood sugar level was
dangerously high, but with
medical intervention, he is
now productive and healthy.
Success stories abound,
say the Nerenbergs.
“Putting the program into
place was a financial leap of
faith, but the leap has really
paid off,” Rhonda said.
The nurse, who had
reluctantly agreed to get the
program going and stay for
a year, is now 17 months
in with no plans on going
anywhere. She is sticking
around “because I love to
see the positive changes in
the employees’ lives.”
Dr. Harrison likes the
continuity of the project.
“There’s the aspect of
doing wellness instead of
trying to fix a problem,”
he said. “It has been good
for the patients. It’s a little
different than mainstream
medicine.”
Several things are critical
to reducing the employee’s
$75 monthly premium.
Someone who doesn’t
smoke saves $25.
Other ways to save are
establishing a relationship
with Dr. Harrison or other
primary care physician,
addressing a disease or
problem that is impacting
their health and doing some-
thing to improve it, getting
a colonoscopy or seeing a
dentist or eye doctor.
Rhonda
encourages
physical activity and gives
away activity trackers to
those who ask for them.
The results of this
health care experiment has
surprised the Nerenbergs.
“Employees tell me their
lives were saved,” Billy
said. “Cancer was spotted.
Diabetics are no longer on
medication.”
Employees have shed
more than 1,000 pounds
in total. In addition, the
company
now
offers
increased health insur-
ance benefits not just to
employees, but to family
members.
One of the perks is time
saved in dealing with health
problems.
Employees
can meet with Nerenberg
immediately. She can refill
prescriptions, draw blood
for labwork and give immu-
nizations and strep tests,
among other things.
“Rhonda will text them
when the doctor is ready,”
Billy said. “It takes 45
seconds to walk over. They
are back to work in 20
minutes.”
The CEO is still stunned
by how well the program is
working. Health insurance
costs are down and produc-
tivity is up. Employees are
healthier.
“When you see people’s
lives change, it’s just
amazing,” he said.
———
Contact Kathy Aney at
kaney@eastoregonian.com
or call 541-966-0810.
REACH: Will begin serving sack lunches,
hot dinners to teenagers in a few weeks
Continued from 1A
“There’s just not a lot of
communication in terms of
organization,” he said.
Rather than reinvent the
wheel, Jackson said REACH
will act as a facilitator in
addition to offering its own
services.
For instance, if a pregnant
teen finds her way to REACH,
volunteers would point her to
Pregnancy Care Services for
baby supplies. Or if a teen is
struggling with drug abuse,
REACH could help connect
them with a drug counselor at
Pendleton High School.
At the outset, Jackson said
REACH will help run two
programs — a twice-a-week
meal program and police
mentor program, both at the
rec center.
In a few weeks, Jackson
said REACH will begin
serving sack lunches and
hot dinners to teenagers in
partnership with the Commu-
nity Action Program of East
Central Oregon
Coming in the fall, Jackson
said REACH will revive
a program called TRACK
— Teaching Research and
Critical Skills to Keep Youth
Engaged in Learning — in
conjunction with the Pend-
leton Police Department.
As a part of the program,
TRACK participants will be
required to meet with police
personnel on a regular basis
to create a research project on
a topic of their own choosing.
Before funding dried up for
the program, Jackson said
TRACK had a record of
success with students who
were struggling with behavior
or academics in school.
In addition to the city
and the police department,
REACH lists several Chris-
tian organizations among
its community partners,
including the Pendleton First
Church of God and Young
By JAKE PEARSON and
MARY CLARE JALONICK
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The
special counsel appointed
to investigate Russian
influence in the 2016
presidential campaign is
now examining whether
President Donald Trump
tried to obstruct justice, The
Washington Post reported
Wednesday evening.
Accusations of obstruc-
tion arose last month when
Trump fired FBI Director
James Comey. Comey
testified in a Senate hearing
last week that he believed
he was fired “because of the
Russia investigation.”
Comey also testified he
had told Trump he was not
under investigation.
The Post and The New
York Times both reported
that Mueller was seeking
interviews
with
three
Trump administration offi-
cials who weren’t involved
in Trump’s campaign:
Dan Coats, the director
of national intelligence;
Michael Rogers, the head
of the National Security
Agency; and Richard
Ledgett, the former NSA
deputy director.
Mark
Corallo,
a
spokesman for Trump’s
personal lawyer, responded
Wednesday evening to the
Post report by saying: “The
FBI leak of information
regarding the president is
outrageous,
inexcusable
and illegal.”
The Post report cited
anonymous sources who
were briefed on requests
made by investigators. It
was not known whether the
FBI was the source of the
information.
Mueller met Wednesday
with the leaders of the
Senate
Intelligence
Committee in an effort to
ensure their investigations
don’t conflict.
The leaders of the Senate
Intelligence
committee
said in a statement issued
Wednesday
that
they
“look forward to future
engagements” with Robert
Mueller.
Senate
Intelligence
Committee
Chairman
Richard Burr, R-N.C.,
and Sen. Mark Warner of
Virginia, the panel’s top
Democrat, didn’t provide
any other details regarding
the meeting. An aide
familiar with the meeting
said it was held to discuss
the investigations, including
ways that the parallel inqui-
ries don’t interfere with one
another. The aide spoke
on condition of anonymity
because the meeting was
private.
The meeting comes a
day after lawmakers ques-
tioned Justice Department
officials about the probe and
Mueller’s independence,
and after a friend of Trump
said the White House was
considering firing Mueller.
Deputy
Attorney
General Rod Rosenstein,
who appointed Mueller last
month, testified Tuesday
he has seen no evidence of
good cause to fire Mueller.
Also Wednesday, Senate
Judiciary Chairman Charles
Grassley said his panel will
investigate the removal of
former FBI Director James
Comey and “any alleged
improper partisan interfer-
ence in law enforcement
investigations.”
Grassley
announced
the investigation in a letter
to California Sen. Dianne
Feinstein, the panel’s top
Democrat. Grassley’s office
said the letter is in response
to a recent letter from
Feinstein requesting that
the committee seek details
from senior FBI leadership
about Comey’s interactions
with President Donald
Trump before he was fired.
The letter said the inves-
tigation will also probe
Comey’s testimony that
Loretta Lynch, as President
Barack Obama’s attorney
general, had directed him
to describe an FBI probe
into Hillary Clinton’s
email practices as merely
a “matter” and to avoid
calling it an investigation.
RAINBOW: Gathering could attract
between 10,000 and 25,000 people
Continued from 1A
anywhere in Oregon that
has a national forest,” he
said. “Spring Council is
usually within an hour or
two drive of the best site or
two that people have located
while scouting.”
The Forest Service’s
main concern with the
influx of such a large group
of people are the effects on
natural resources, public
safety and the impact on
the community, said Mike
Stearly,
public
affairs
specialist for the Malheur
National Forest. He esti-
mated the gathering could
attract between 10,000 and
25,000 people.
The Rainbow gathering
will be managed by a federal
incident management team
with law enforcement
officers and advisers. The
team will be similar to those
dispatched for wildfires
and will work with local
law enforcement and the
community, according to
Stearly.
Stearly said the Forest
Service requires groups
larger than 75 people to
acquire a special use permit.
The Montana Standard
newspaper reported the
total cost for the U.S.
Forest Service relating to a
Rainbow Family gathering
near Jackson, Montana,
in 2013 was $573,361.
Roughly $400,000 of that
was spent on law enforce-
ment.
During
the
1997
gathering on the Ochoco
National Forest in Crook
County, garbage disposal,
increased traffic and low
levels of fecal coliform and
giardia present in streams
used as water sources
were concerns. There were
reports of overdoses, drug
and alcohol charges and a
recovered stolen vehicle.
Local artist and Prairie
City resident David Seacord,
who has attended these
gatherings in the past, said
there could be both benefits
and drawbacks to having the
gathering in the area.
“Any community that
has a gathering in the area
is going to be benefited
economically,”
Seacord
said.
However, like many
events, he said the gathering
could attract undesirable
elements. As a whole,
he said, the event was
peaceful and respectful, but
sometimes opportunists will
take advantage of a free,
public event that welcomes
everyone.
The gathering is made
possible entirely through
volunteers who build from
scratch the infrastructure to
support tens of thousands
of people and then entirely
remove it, according to
Seacord.
“They are committed to
leaving land in impeccable
condition, and they have
a history of that being
acknowledged,” he said.
He said people unsure
about the gathering should
see what it is like for
themselves before passing
judgment.
WALDEN: Oregon donors provided less
than half of Walden’s individual contributions
Continued from 1A
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
A group of girls fly down a slip-and-slide on Wednes-
day during a First Church of God and REACH Pendleton
event at Rice-Blakey Park in Pendleton.
“If we’re ever
struggling to fit
everybody in,
that’s a good
problem to have.”
— Robb Corbett,
Pendleton city manager on
space at the rec center
Life, a nondenominational
youth Christian ministry with
a chapter in Pendleton.
Pregnancy Care Services
promotes “a Christian view
that affirms the sanctity of
human life,” according to its
website.
Jackson said REACH
“is not afraid to cross those
boundaries” if it means giving
youth more access to services,
but REACH itself is a stand-
alone organization without a
religious affiliation.
If REACH is going to
establish trust with youth,
Jackson said the organization
needs a consistent location
to call home. The Pendleton
Recreation Center would
fit its needs, but the move
created new concerns that the
center’s existing users would
be crowded out.
At a May 16 city council
meeting, Pendleton resident
Joe Engum said there were
worries that REACH would
force out the yoga class in
the rec center’s Foundation
Room.
In an interview, City
Manager Robb Corbett said
no programs would be elim-
inated from the recreation
center due to REACH’S
tenancy.
Corbett said the city will
primarily house REACH
in the gym and will handle
scheduling conflicts as they
arise.
Corbett said there has
already been a conflict
between a gymnastics class
and REACH, but they were
able to move the gymnastics
class into a room at the Vert.
If REACH’s demand for
time and space exceed the
supply, Corbett said the city
would deal with it accord-
ingly. He also said the orga-
nization would begin paying
for the space at the end of the
year, though he wasn’t sure
what the rate would be.
“If we’re ever struggling to
fit everybody in, that’s a good
problem to have,” he said.
———
Contact Antonio Sierra at
asierra@eastoregonian.com
or 541-966-0836.
Peter DeFazio, $126,078;
U.S.
Rep.
Suzanne
Bonamici, $104,987, and
U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer,
$25,502.
Walden’s
second
committee — the Walden
Victory Fund — reported
contributions of $129,500.
That included a $50,000
contribution from Jay
Graham, a wealthy Texas
oilman.
The Walden for Congress
reports show donors from
far Eastern Oregon provided
a fraction of the $261,823
he raised from individuals
or businesses. In Umatilla
County, Roger Bounds, a
retired Hermiston banker
and father of Walden’s chief
of staff Lorissa Bounds,
donated $500; Eva Swain,
president of Swain Subaru
in Hermiston, $500; and
Charles Johnston, a retired
doctor from Pilot Rock,
$300.
Overall, the reports show
Oregon donors provided
less than half of Walden’s
individual contributions.
Political action commit-
tees, representing every-
thing from dermatologists
to garbage collectors, were
Walden’s most potent
source of campaign money.
In all, Walden reported
getting $527,292 from
the political committees
with just one — the PGE
PAC — based in Oregon.
The National Cattlemen’s
Beef Association PAC gave
$6,000.
The Democratic Party of
Oregon in a statement to the
Enterprise said Walden “has
an ongoing history of voting
for special interests.”
The party, which hasn’t
fielded
a
competitive
candidate against Walden
in recent elections, said he
“is continuing to receive
big donations from the
special interests he has
been catering to instead of
his constituents — most
notably the healthcare and
telecom industries.”
The
reports
show
the cost of running for
Congress, where Walden
has served since 1998. His
committee spent $183,000
in the first three months of
this year on expenses that
included staff, printing, and
political consultants. He
also transferred $150,000
to the Republican National
Congressional Committee,
the House group focused
on electing Republicans to
Congress. Walden chaired
the group until last fall.
The report showed
some fund-raising work for
Walden took place in luxury
settings.
In
February,
his
campaign spent $6,370
on travel and fund-raising
expenses at the St. Regis
Deer Valley, a five-star resort
outside Park City, Utah. The
following month Walden’s
committee spent $6,341 for
a fund-raising event at BLT
Prime, a Washington steak
house operating in President
Trump’s hotel, the Trump
International. The campaign
also listed a $3,000 travel
expense at Skamania Lodge
— roughly a half hour from
Walden’s home in Hood
River.
The Walden Victory
Fund, a separate political
committee, listed a $6,000
expense in February for
“event site rental” of the
Allison Inn and Spa in
Newberg, which describes
itself as a “wine country
resort.”
Marta Simons of Hood
River, treasurer for Walden
for Congress, didn’t return
two telephone messages
and Lisa Lisker, the Wash-
ington-based treasurer for
the Walden Victory Fund,
said she couldn’t answer
questions. Justin Discigil,
Walden’s
spokesman,
asked for written questions
but responded with a
general statement without
answering them.
Discigil
said
the
campaign money is “used
judiciously to support
Greg’s campaign” and that
Walden’s supporters under-
stand his role trying to elect
Republicans.
“Greg’s supporters also
understand the only thing
they receive in return for
their contribution is a ‘thank
you.’” Discigil said.
———
The East Oregonian
contributed to this report.