Insurers are seeking premium increases for 2024 averaging 6.2% for individual plans and 12.1% for small business plans.
HEALTH CARE
Nonprofit awards $5 million to widen abortion access in Oregon
Recent grants to expand abortion access in Oregon come out of $15 million allocated by the state Legislature in 2022.
Donation boosts therapy through play to help struggling Salem families
Family Building Blocks opened a new mental health program just before the pandemic to make it easier for parents and kids to get therapy in a familiar setting. A recent gift is helping its therapists deepen their training.
Salem doctor loses medical license over sexual misconduct
The Oregon Medical Board found Robert J. Harder, an obstetrician who formerly practiced at Salem Clinic, engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior with a patient.
Oregon expands free health insurance for low-income Oregonians – regardless of immigration status
Healthier Oregon is now open to immigrants who don’t qualify for Oregon Health Plan because of immigration status.
Oregon lawmakers earmark millions for mental health and addiction services
The Legislature passed measures to provide more residential care, respond to people in crises and fight the opioid overdose epidemic.
COLUMN: Why health care providers in Salem still struggle to hire
High stress levels, low pay and higher rates of illness from Covid have contributed to hiring challenges in crucial health care fields, columnist Pamela Ferrara writes.
Audit: Oregon Health Authority mishandled hundreds of thousands in federal mental health money
Federal auditors flagged problems in the health authority’s use of federal money to expand a facility, which is not allowed.
Medical, dental, mental health care under one roof as Northwest Human Services expands flagship clinic
A newly-expanded 57,000 square foot clinic in West Salem serves as primary medical care for nearly 13,000 Salem-area patients per year, one in five of whom are homeless.
Fire chief seeks payroll tax to fund 14 firefighters, cut response times
Last year, around a third of Salemites who called 911 had to wait more than five and a half
minutes for help to come. The Salem Fire Department, facing an increasing number of calls, hopes to add staff to improve response times.
