legislative updates

Legislature Carves a Place for African-American Hair Care

House Bill 3409 sets licensing standards for “natural hair care,” and allows for businesses where stylists can weave, lace and braid hair without a degree from a beauty school.
May 24, 2013 – A few years ago, Amber Starks wanted to volunteer her hair braiding and weaving skills to African-American kids in foster homes, but was denied by the state Board of Cosmetology. On Thursday, the Legislature signaled its support, granting a path where Starks can both help foster kids and run her own business specializing in hair designs unique to black culture. Read More >>

Partisan Politics Throw Tougher Vaccine Law Into Question

The absence of Democratic Sen. Betsy Johnson has allowed Bend Republican Sen. Tim Knopp to block a bill that he feels would infringe upon religious freedom by requiring parents to show informed consent before their unvaccinated children can enter public schools.
May 22, 2013 — A senator’s automobile accident and a Republican blockade have put at risk a bill that would limit childhood vaccination exemptions. Read More >>

Liability Concerns Jeopardize Bill to Protect Child Athletes from Concussions

Republicans throw up concerns about legal liability to volunteer coaches and referees if they become responsible for children who suffer concussions on the playfield. SB 721 expands Max’s Law, which protects high school athletes, to youth leagues.
May 22, 2013 — A bill that would apply Max’s Law to non-school sports teams hit a snag in Wednesday’s House Health Committee when Republicans raised concerns about the liability it might give to volunteer coaches, referees and umpires who overlook a child’s concussion. Read More >>

Cultural Competency in Healthcare Heads to Governor

Sen. Jackie Winters championed the measure to give state medical boards the right to make cultural competency education a prerequisite for a continued license.
May 22, 2013 — Sen. Jackie Winters said 40 or 50 years ago, when some black Americans had diabetes, they had a colloquial term for it — “the sugars” — which their doctors may not understand. Read More >>

Bates Pushes Bill to Snuff Out Sex Trafficking in Massage Parlors

Senate Bill 387 would help elevate the profession of massage therapy by requiring facilities to be permitted and inspected by the state.
May 21, 2013 -- The House Health Committee voted 8-1 to move a bill that Sen. Alan Bates, D-Medford, says will both elevate the profession of massage therapy and rein in human sex trafficking and prostitution that uses the therapeutic practice as cover. Read More >>

PTSD Marijuana Prescription Bill Moves to House Floor

A separate bill, creating dispensaries for medical marijuana, moves through the Committee on Ways & Means.
May 20, 2013 — Rep. Jim Weidner of McMinnville is typically the most conservative Republican on the House Health Committee, but after an emotional debate on Friday he was moved to become the lone GOP representative to join with the Democrats to move to the floor Senate Bill 281 — which would expand the state’s medical marijuana program to allow prescriptions to alleviate post-traumatic stress disorder. Read More >>

Hospitals Accused of Putting Their Own Self-Interest Above Patients

The problem has become particularly acute for physical therapists and radiologists. Senate Bill 683 would require physicians employed by hospitals to disclose their organization’s financial interest in referrals and allow patients to seek care with an independent practitioner.
May 20, 2013 — As major hospital systems like Providence and Legacy have bought up ancillary medical centers, added more physical therapists to their payroll and expanded their own supply of medical imaging equipment, independent physical therapists and radiologists say they have seen their referrals dry up and their businesses decline. Read More >>

Greenlick and Monnes Anderson Differ Over Health Insurance Rate Review Changes

The House Health Committee Chairman wants to give DCBS new powers in the annual health insurance rate review approval, while the Senate Health Committee Chairwoman continues to support Regence’s efforts to limit notice of rate hikes.
May 17, 2013 — Rep. Mitch Greenlick, D-Portland, is moving to bolster Oregon’s rate review process, even as Sen. Laurie Monnes Anderson, D-Gresham, continues to support a Regence BlueCross BlueShield provision that removed requirements from Senate Bill 413 that insurers notify consumers when they request steep rate increases from the state's Insurance Division. Read More >>

128 Students to Receive $2,000 KAISER Permanente Health Care Career Scholarships on May 18

May 15, 2013 — When Annel Mendoza was 6 or 7, she learned her cousin had a heart murmur. After watching her cousin go from surgery through recovery, Mendoza decided that she wanted to become a heart surgeon. Read More >>

Single-Payer Activists Keep Dream of Universal Healthcare Alive

A separate measure, giving state sponsorship of a comprehensive study on universal healthcare financing, makes its way through the Committee on Ways & Means.
May 15, 2013 — Wes Brain was uninsured last winter when a tonsillectomy showed signs of throat cancer. He qualified for the high-risk Oregon Medical Insurance Pool, which the state has administered through Regence BlueCross BlueShield. Read More >>
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