Page 12A
OFF PAGE ONE
East Oregonian
Wednesday, December 27, 2017
ROADS: Salt shed in Echo under construction MEDICAID: Oregon’s
“Most crashes
Medicaid program costs
involve driver
$9.3B in funds per year
behavior. We
Continued from 1A
relayed Murphy, adding that
thus far there have been no
significant closures of I-84
due to winter conditions.
ODOT has been building
several salt sheds in the
region, each of which can
store up to 1,000 tons of salt.
The salt shed at Exit
193 in Echo is still being
constructed. Murphy said
ODOT has been using salt
from the La Grande salt shed
for use on the Pendleton side
of Deadman Pass. He said
ODOT estimates they have
used between 700 and 1,000
tons of salt in the region so
far, but that includes every-
where from the Idaho border
to Meacham. And because
this is the first year using
rock salt on roads in the
region, he said it’s difficult
to know what that number
means.
Murphy
said
with
magnesium
chloride,
another substance ODOT
want people to
understand they
can do something
— leaving early
is something we
can control.”
Photo courtesy Jonathan Kerwin
A blanket of snow can’t keep Pendleton’s Main Street
from bustling on Tuesday.
uses to combat icy roads,
crews would try to limit its
use to hills, curves and other
trouble spots. Crews would
also try to lay it down before
snow or ice arrived.
Salt works a little differ-
ently, Murphy said. It’s best
to lay it down at the first hint
of snow or ice.
“You have to time it so
you put it down just as the
storm starts and then let it do
its job,” Murphy said.
Murphy said thus far,
Umatilla County hadn’t seen
many bad accidents due to
the weather.
“There’s lots of slide-offs,
dings and bangs,” he said.
He said he didn’t know
whether that could be
attributed to the use of rock
salt, but he urged drivers to
— Peter Murphy,
a spokesman for ODOT
continue taking whatever
precautions they could.
“Most crashes involve
driver behavior,” he said.
“We want people to under-
stand they can do something
— leaving early is some-
thing we can control.”
———
Contact
Jayati
Ramakrishnan
at
jramakrishnan@eastorego-
nian.com or 541-564-4534
WINE: The Rocks District currently has 37 vineyards
Continued from 1A
difference, those markers
are telling you there’s
something special about
that place on planet Earth,”
Robertson said. “That’s a
really remarkable thing.
It’s limited. It’s rare. It’s
distinctive.”
Terrific terroir
Robertson said there is
evidence of wine grapes
being grown in the area as
far back as the early 1900s.
The unique geography,
he explained, makes for
premier growing conditions.
The Rocks District is a
subset of the Walla Walla
AVA, though it is located
entirely in Oregon. It is the
only AVA predicated on one
single soil series, character-
ized by basalt cobblestones
— and lots of them.
The land was essentially
formed over thousands of
years by the nearby Walla
Walla River, which washed
down from the Blue Moun-
tains and deposited gravels
up to several hundred feet
deep.
Geologists call it an
alluvial fan. Robertson calls
it tremendous terroir. Not
only do the rocks allow for
incredible drainage, he said,
but the surface stones also
act as miniature radiators
to ripen grapes later in the
season.
“It’s not because we’re
geniuses. It’s because of that
terroir,” Robertson said.
The Rocks District
covers 5.9 square miles
and has grown to include
37 vineyards, with more in
development.
Robertson
said a producer from Rioja,
a wine region in northern
Spain, has purchased 10
acres in the district, while
Willamette Valley Vine-
yards, one of Oregon’s top
wine producers, will plant
its first 5 acres in the district
in early 2018.
Willamette Valley Vine-
yards, based south of Salem,
is not new to the Walla
Walla Valley. The company
first purchased 42 acres
in SeVein Vineyards near
Milton-Freewater in 2015,
growing mostly Cabernet
Sauvignon.
Christine Clair, winery
director for Willamette
Valley Vineyards, said they
purchased 36 acres of former
apple and cherry orchards in
EO file photo
Vitner Steve Robertson of College Place points to one of the buds on a Syrah vine
at his vineyard in the Rocks District, outside of Milton-Freewater, in this February
2015 file photo.
“It’s going to be
an exponential
rise in planted
acres, which then
drives everything
else. It’s not a
causal thing. It’s
serious business.”
— Steve Robertson,
owner of SJR Vineyard
and Delmas Winery
Photo contributed by Kevin Pogue
Rocky soil and large cobblestones are a hallmark of
The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater.
The Rocks District, which
will eventually become an
estate vineyard for their
local brand.
“We think this is one of
the most interesting wine
growing areas in all the new
world,” Clair said.
Tail winds
The goal of The Rocks
District
Winegrowers,
Robertson said, is to
continue telling the district’s
story as the AVA garners
more attention and invest-
ment from around the world.
The nonprofit currently
represents 20 different
growers. Robertson said
another 165 acres are in
development. In 10 years,
he said, The Rocks District
could become a major
player at the global level.
“The hardest thing about
the wine industry is being
patient,” Robertson said. “I
think our first steps can’t
necessarily be in New York
or San Francisco. Our first
steps need to be in Seattle
and Portland.”
Robertson said the
nonprofit will be meeting
in mid-February to decide
upon its members’ ambi-
tions and marketing goals.
First, he said, they need
to build up their volume.
Consumer awareness will
then follow.
“Our biggest job in the
Northwest is going to be
Portland,” Robertson said.
“But the upside is strong,
because so few people
from Portland have had the
opportunity to taste these
wines.”
Tom Danowski, presi-
dent of the Oregon Wine
Board, already likes what
he sees out of The Rocks
District. The AVA, he said,
is like a “turbo-charger” for
highlighting the Oregon side
of the Walla Walla Valley.
Along with critical
acclaim and a passionate
group
of
advocates,
Danowski said those are the
tail winds that can help an
AVA take off fast.
“The potential is just
going to be extraordinary,”
Danowski said.
Robertson said The
Rocks District must prove it
can walk before it runs, but
ultimately he believes it will
become the most important
AVA in the Northwest.
“It’s going to be an
exponential rise in planted
acres, which then drives
everything else,” Robertson
said. “It’s not a causal thing.
It’s serious business.”
KRAWCZYK: Looking forward to new outdoor recreation
Continued from 1A
Mark said.
Mark — previously
assistant finance director
for the city of Fort Worth,
Texas — started his job as
Hermiston’s finance director
on Dec. 11. Tammy left
behind a job as an educator
and administrator at a small
community college and
said she hopes to be able to
continue to work in higher
education here.
They’re a little apprehen-
sive about what a northern
winter might be like, but
they are also looking
forward to the new oppor-
tunities for hiking, biking,
hunting, boating and other
outdoor recreation now
within a short drive.
“I want to learn how to
snowboard,” Mark said.
For now, however, he
is still settling in to the
new job, and the couple
is looking for a home in
Hermiston’s tight housing
market.
Mark’s previous expe-
rience includes banking,
municipal finance, finance
for a utility company, and
time handling personal
finances for millionaires in
the oil industry in Texas.
They had sold a company
for $2.3 billion and were
looking to build “genera-
tional wealth.”
He said each type of
financial challenge taught
him new lessons, from
dealing with government
regulations to handling
problems that arose when
people didn’t heed his fidu-
ciary advice. Mark likened
jobs he has held to his time
going on camping trips as
an Eagle Scout and trying
to follow the principle of
leaving the campsite better
than when he found it.
“I have tried to do that
with every job I’ve had and
I hope to do that here,” he
said.
He said he is also on the
faculty for the Graduate
School of Banking at
Louisiana State University,
which offers a two-week
course each spring, and
loves
the
“light-bulb
moments” when he helps
small-town bank owners
understand ways they can
successfully compete with
the country’s largest banks
for local customers.
Tammy said she is
looking forward to finding a
new job in the area. She said
the couple has always been
in the habit of involving
themselves in the communi-
ties where they have lived.
She is enjoying Hermiston
so far, and said everything
from the investment in
schools to the cleanliness
of the roads shows that
residents take pride in their
community. She also appre-
ciates the town’s offerings of
restaurants and businesses.
“I like the mom and pop
shops, the drug store on
Main,” she said.
The Krawczyk name
(pronounced “Crossick”)
is a little hard to spell, but
Mark said it’s as common as
“Smith” in Polish. His father
emigrated from Poland to
America as a baby, but Mark
said he doesn’t remember
much from the informal
Polish lessons his father
used to give him as a child.
———
Contact Jade McDowell
at jmcdowell@eastorego-
nian.com or 541-564-4536.
Continued from 1A
coverage program for the poor
and other qualifying groups.
Oregonians earning up to 138
percent of the federal poverty
level ($16,100 for an indi-
vidual; $32,900 for a family
of four) are eligible for the
program. In Oregon, the
Medicaid program is known
as the Oregon Health Plan
and covers about 1 million
people, including 400,000
kids.
• How is the Oregon
Health Plan financed?
Both the state and the federal
government pay for it with
public funds, but the federal
government picks up most
of the tab. Plus, hospitals,
insurers and coordinated care
organizations all pay taxes —
described in the measure as
“assessments” — to the state.
Oregon uses that money to
get matching funding from
the federal government.
• How much do hospi-
tals pay? Hospitals pay a
5.3 percent assessment on
net revenues, which, once
matched by the feds, is
returned to them as a group
and redistributed. Under
the state law passed earlier
this year, they also pay a .7
percent assessment on net
revenues that is not returned
to them, but put into a state
fund for healthcare.
• What does a “yes” vote
mean? A “yes” vote means
you want the state to impose
and keep the nonrefundable
.7 percent assessment on
hospitals, as well as assess-
ments on insurers, the Public
Employees Benefits Board
and coordinated care organi-
zations — regional networks
of OHP providers.
• What does a “no”
vote mean? A “no” vote
means you wish to repeal
the nonrefundable .7 percent
assessment, and the assess-
ments on insurers, the Public
Employees Benefits Board
and coordinated care organi-
zations.
• How does this ballot
measure affect people on
the Oregon Health Plan?
Hundreds of thousands of
Oregonians gained Medicaid
coverage under the Afford-
able Care Act, which allowed
states to provide coverage
to people making up to 138
percent of the federal poverty
level. As of November 2016,
about 366,000 people were
eligible for OHP under the
Affordable Care Act.
Previously only those
making up to 100 percent
of the federal poverty level
were considered eligible. But
that group, earning between
100 percent and 138 percent
of the federal poverty level,
isn’t legally required by the
federal government to be
covered by states.
Supporters of Measure
101 say that if it fails, the
Legislature could decide to
cut those people from the
health plan to save the money
that the state government
won’t be able to collect.
• If the measure fails,
would lawmakers have to
cut the health plan budget?
No, but proponents note that
faced with funding gaps in
the past, lawmakers have
knocked people off the
Oregon Health Plan. “If you
are a Medicaid recipient,
this is about whether you
have access to your health
care,” said Jessica Adamson,
a lobbyist for Providence
Health & Services, which is
backing Measure 101. “This
is about whether or not the
funding is there to fully fund
this program. Anything else
besides Measure 101 is a
gamble. There is no Plan B.”
Opponents counter that
state legislators can find
that money elsewhere in the
budget to cover those people.
“This ballot measure isn’t
about whether Medicaid is
good or bad,” said Parrish,
the lawmaker urging a “no”
vote. “It’s about whether
we picked the right funding
mechanism to pay for it.”
• I buy my own insur-
ance. Does this affect how
much I pay? Yes. Under the
law, insurers will be assessed
at 1.5 percent of gross
premiums earned.
Premiums on the indi-
vidual market could increase
by 1.5 percent because the
legislation allows insurers
to increase premiums by up
to that amount to offset the
tax that they’ll be paying,
opponents say.
• So if the tax fails, my
rates won’t go up? Not
necessarily.
Supporters
of Measure 101 say that
expanded Medicaid coverage
reduces demands on costly
emergency care. It also funds
a program called reinsurance
that is designed to hold down
rate increases in premiums
for people who buy their own
insurance.
It essentially acts as insur-
ance for insurers, providing a
pool of money to reimburse
insurers part of the cost of
very expensive procedures.
In 2018, the program is
holding rates in Oregon’s
individual health insurance
market, on average, 6 percent
lower than they would
be without reinsurance,
according to the Department
of Consumer and Business
Services. That’s about $300
less per year, according to the
“Yes on 101” campaign.
• I get insurance through
my employer. Does this
affect how much I’ll pay?
If you work for a business
with 50 employees or fewer,
neither outcome of the
measure likely will affect
your rates in 2018, but likely
would in 2019.
Since 2018 rates have
already been approved by
the Oregon Department of
Consumer and Business
Services, the Legislature
would have to take action to
change those rates.
Insurers in the small
group market would pay
the 1.5 percent tax on gross
premiums earned.
• What about big
employers? For Oregonians
who are covered through an
employer with more than 50
employees, insurance costs
will likely not immediately
change due to either outcome
of the measure, either. The
state doesn’t regulate rates
for large employers.
Some large employers
go out and buy plans from
insurers. The state doesn’t
regulate rates for those types
of plans, but it does regulate
benefits, the way policy
contracts are written and the
financial solvency of compa-
nies offering plans. Those
insurers who provide plans
in the large group market will
pay the 1.5 percent assess-
ment as well if Measure 101
passes.
• My company is self-in-
sured. What can I expect?
Some companies — usually
bigger ones — self-insure
and get plans through
what’s called a third party
administrator. About 790,000
Oregonians are enrolled in a
plan through a self-insured
employer, according to
the Oregon Department of
Consumer and Business
Services.
The state doesn’t regulate
any part of those plans due
to federal law. Self-insured
employers are exempt from
paying the state tax on the
premiums specified on the
ballot.
• How much does all of
this cost? Oregon’s Medicaid
program costs $9.3 billion in
state and federal funds per
year, according to the Oregon
Secretary of State’s office.
If the measure is over-
turned, legislators would
face an $840 million to $1.3
billion hole in the Medicaid
budget, a figure that includes
both state and federal
matching funds.
How does this election
affect people on Medicare?
Measure 101 will not
have an effect on Medicare
coverage. Medicare, the
healthcare coverage program
for people age 65 and older, is
funded solely by the federal
government and would not
be affected by changes in
state policy.
• What about Tricare?
Tricare, the health insur-
ance program for military
members, will not be affected
by the insurance tax.
• Will the outcome of
the vote settle this issue?
No. If Ballot Measure 101
fails in January, legislators
will have to re-balance the
budget during the February
special session. But even
if the measure passes, the
provisions expire, meaning
lawmakers would be debating
this again in 2019.