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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 7, 2020)
NEWS WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2020 HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A3 County commissioner candidate arrested BY ALEX CASTLE STAFF WRITER Dan Dorran said Fri- day, Oct. 2, that he is stay- ing in the race for Umatilla County commissioner after he was arrested on accusa- tions of driving under the infl uence of intoxicants in Umatilla on Saturday, Sept. 26. Dorran, 65, gave a state- ment to the East Oregonian about the arrest on Oct. 2 but declined to answer fur- ther questions. “I’m defi nitely in the race,” he said. “The amount of support has been incredible.” D o r - ran said his actions after a golf out- ing were “foolish.” “I take Dorran full respon- sibility for my decision to get behind the wheel of a vehicle after consuming alcohol,” he said. “It’s been a hard awak- ening for me and it’s some- thing I’m addressing with my family.” According to the Face- book page of Big River Golf Course in Umatilla, Dorran was a participant in the Sherrell Chevrolet Farm City Open held at the course on Sept. 26. “I can express nothing but remorse and the prom- ise that I’ll work hard to make amends and rebuild trust. I also deeply regret the potential distraction this may cause from the import- ant issues confronting our community,” he said in a statement. Local law enforcement is being tight-lipped about the details surrounding Dor- ran’s arrest. The Walla Walla Union-Bulletin fi rst reported the arrest on Oct. 1. Accord- ing to the report, Dorran was involved in a two-vehi- cle collision near the inter- section of Highway 730 and 395, or “Buck’s Corner,” in Umatilla at 4:57 p.m. on Sept. 26. No injuries were reported. The report quoted Sgt. Bill Wright with Uma- tilla police, who said Dor- ran was cited and released after offi cers determined during their investigation that he was driving while impaired. When Umatilla Police Chief Darla Huxel was contacted by phone, she said she wasn’t respond- ing to inquiries because she wasn’t working Oct. 2 and referred requests for infor- mation to an on-duty Uma- tilla police offi cer. Sgt. Natalia Tovey with Umatilla police said she didn’t have additional details, such as how police determined Dorran was impaired, and directed fur- ther questions to the Uma- tilla County District Attor- ney’s Offi ce. Umatilla County District Attorney Dan Primus said he was aware of Dorran’s arrest but his offi ce had yet to receive the case fi les from Umatilla police. “When we receive that, we’ll review it in due course just as we would in any other matter and follow through with the appropri- ate steps at that time,” the district attorney said. Tovey said those fi les should be sent to Primus on Monday, Oct. 5. Dorran, a Hermiston resi- dent who’s spent time on the county fair board and other local committees, fi nished fi rst with roughly 34% of the votes in May’s primary that featured fi ve candidates for county commissioner. On Nov. 3, voters can choose between Dorran and Three Percenter HollyJo Beers of Milton-Freewater, who fi nished second with roughly 24% of the primary vote. Free help available for Medicare open enrollment Reopen schools rally By JADE MCDOWELL NEWS EDITOR Jade McDowell/Hermiston Herald Almost 20 people stood along Elm Avenue in Hermiston with signs promoting the reopening of local schools on Monday, Oct. 5, 2020, with slogans, such as “Classrooms not chatrooms” and “Give us a choice.” According to Oregon Department of Education rules, most schools cannot open until the county they are in has fewer than 10 new confi rmed COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people for three weeks in a row, or about eight cases a week for Umatilla County. Umatilla County reported 116 confi rmed cases for Sept. 26-Oct. 2. Medicare open enroll- ment starts Oct. 15, and Good Shepherd Health Care System is offering area resi- dents free help in fi nding the right plan. Jessica Reker, director of education for Good Shep- herd, said the hospital won’t be able to offer its usual Medicare events because of COVID-19, but people can sign up for one-on-one appointments in person, over the phone or via video chat through Senior Health Insur- ance Benefi ts Assistance. Trained counselors can help people sign up for Medicare for the fi rst time or check to see if they would benefi t from any changes to the coverage they have. The open enrollment period, which runs from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, is the only time of the year people can make changes to their cover- age. Darla Irwin, senior ser- vices coordinator for Good Shepherd, said every year new plans come on the mar- ket, coverage and pricing for existing plans changes, and patients often have changes in their medications that might be better covered under a different plan. This year, for example, the federal government is rolling out changes to Medicare to offer more affordable options for people on insulin. And Eastern Oregon residents will have a new Medicare Advantage option through Summit Health, which was recently formed by several hospitals in the region. “This is a good time to check what’s new,” Irwin said. “I know a couple of the new plans available this year are a little cheaper.” To get help fi guring out what coverage works best for them, patients can call the hospital’s education depart- ment at 541-667-3509 to schedule an appointment. “If someone does not want to come into the offi ce, they can do it vir- tually or by phone,” Reker said. “We will mail them everything they need.” For their appointment, patients should have their Medicare card and a list of their current medications with them. If they have let- ters from the Social Secu- rity offi ce or Department of Human Services regard- ing their coverage, those are helpful as well. It will also save time if they have already created a login for www.medicare.gov and have their password and user name ready, but counselors can assist with that if needed. Reker said they expect a rush of appointment-mak- ing near the end of the open enrollment period, and rec- ommended that people make their appointment soon to avoid a backlog. For people who wish to sign up for Medicare on their own or want to be better pre- pared for their appointment with a counselor, a “Medi- care 101” video is avail- able on the Good Shepherd Health Care System You- Tube page at youtube.com/ watch?v=giwh0C-zIsc.
