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@OHAOregon
December 5, 2023
Media contact: Larry Bingham, 971-239-6499, Larry.bingham@oha.oregon.gov
SALEM, Ore. — Oregon Health Authority (OHA) has announced plans to offer free opioid overdose reversal kits to middle and high schools throughout the state.
The effort is an expansion of the Save Lives Oregon (SLO) Initiative’s Harm Reduction Clearinghouse Project.
The SLO Harm Reduction Clearinghouse began during COVID and has provided naloxone and other harm reduction supplies at no cost to agencies around the state that directly engage with people at highest risk of substance use related overdose, infections, and injuries.
The expansion of the Harm Reduction Clearinghouse Project to support schools to access naloxone was made possible through one-time funding from the Oregon’s Opioid Settlement Prevention, Treatment and Recovery Board.
The Oregon Department of Education last week notified school district leaders about the availability of naloxone for schools, registration opened Nov. 29 and as of today 505 total schools, colleges, and universities have requested to receive reversal kits.
The intent is to help school districts increase access to overdose reversal kits within their schools for use in the event of an opioid overdose emergency at or near a school campus.
“The opioid epidemic and overdose crisis impacts every community in Oregon. While overdose events on school property are rare, our school communities should be prepared to respond to an overdose medical emergency,” said Ebony Clarke, OHA’s director of behavioral health.
Every middle and high school is eligible to receive up to three opioid overdose reversal kits. The kits contain a wall mounted naloxone box, instructions, emergency medical supplies, and eight doses of the opioid antagonist, naloxone nasal spray.
Naloxone, an opioid overdose reversal medication, can restore breathing while waiting for emergency medical services to arrive. Access to naloxone is necessary for school staff to respond to an opioid overdose on or near a school campus.
Eligible schools must serve students seventh grade or higher. The program is open to all public, private, charter schools, colleges and universities or tribal communities located in Oregon.
For more information, including the link to the online application, please visit the SLO website.
The SLO Clearinghouse has provided no-cost supplies to more than 280 organizations and agencies across Oregon and Tribal communities, including harm reduction organizations, local public health and behavioral health agencies, law enforcement, first responders, community health clinics, substance use disorder facilities and hospital-based programs.
The Harm Reduction Clearinghouse has distributed more than 335,500 doses of naloxone to agencies that directly distribute naloxone to people at risk of opioid overdose since 2022, according to OHA estimates.
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November 30, 2023
Media Contact: Amy Bacher, amy.bacher2@oha.oregon.gov
After federal rules posed added restrictions to the state’s plan, OHA and state partners pursued new avenues to get devices to OHP members
Portland, Ore. – Today Oregon Health Authority (OHA) announced the state will update its plan for how climate-related devices are distributed to eligible Oregon Health Plan (OHP) members prior to a forecasted weather-related emergency. The benefits are projected to begin in March 2024, pending federal government approval.
OHA initially proposed introducing climate benefits for OHP members in January 2024 as part of Oregon’s 1115 Medicaid waiver, which uses federal dollars to provide climate devices like air conditioners, air filtration devices, and portable power supplies to eligible Medicaid members; however, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) informed the state that distributing climate devices prior to an emergency declaration would not be possible.
“The limitation would have severely restricted distribution of climate devices, so we sought feedback from state partners and a more flexible approach,” said Dave Baden, interim director of OHA. “We look forward to continuing to work with CMS and moving toward final approval.”
“Our first priority always is our community,” said Sean Jessup, Chief Executive Officer, Eastern Oregon Coordinated Care Organization (EOCCO). “We’re laser-focused on getting the right resources to our OHP members, particularly in times of greater need. We’re encouraged that this plan will even better serve people.”
Before the new benefits launch, CCO-enrolled OHP members can contact their CCO to see if climate supports are available through “flexible services” (also called health related services). If a member has OHP but is not sure which CCO they are in, they can call the Client Services Unit at 1-800-273-0557 or email: Ask.OHP@odhsoha.oregon.gov.
Additional details will be provided in the coming weeks. Information about Oregon’s 1115 Medicaid waiver is currently available on OHA’s web site, via the waiver newsletter, and through webinars in English and Spanish.
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PORTLAND, Ore.—Oregon Health Authority (OHA) has lifted the recreational use health advisory issued for Willow Creek Reservoir in Morrow County.
OHA issued the advisory Sept. 19, 2023.
Water monitoring has confirmed levels of cyanotoxins in Willow Creek Reservoir are below recreational guideline values for people. However, detected levels are still above OHA’s educational guideline values for dogs, so owners should keep their pets away from these areas.
OHA advises recreational visitors to stay alert to signs of cyanobacteria blooms. Blooms can develop and disappear on any water body at any time when conditions are favorable. Only a fraction of water bodies in Oregon are monitored for blooms and toxins, so it’s important for people to be familiar with signs of a bloom, exposures and symptoms by visiting OHA’s Cyanobacteria Harmful Algae Bloom website at http://www.healthoregon.org/hab.
When recreating, people – and especially small children and pets – should avoid areas where the water is foamy, scummy, thick like paint, pea-green or blue-green, or if thick brownish-red mats are visible or bright green clumps are suspended in the water. If you see these signs, avoid activities that cause you to swallow water or inhale droplets, such as swimming or high-speed water activities, and keep pets out of the area.
Cyanotoxins can still exist in clear water. When a bloom dies, toxins released may reach into clear water around the bloom. Blooms can be pushed into other areas, leaving behind the toxins released. There also are species of cyanobacteria that anchor themselves at the bottom of a water body, live in the sediment, or can grow on aquatic plants and release toxins into clear water.
For health information or to report an illness, contact OHA at 971-673-0482.
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November 22, 2023
Media contacts:
Erica Heartquist, Oregon Health Authority, Erica.J.Heartquist@oha.oregon.gov, 503-871-8843
Jake Sunderland, Oregon Department of Human Services, Jake.Sunderland@odhs.oregon.gov, 503-877-0170
SALEM, Ore. — Nearly two-thirds of the way into renewals process following the end of the COVID-19 pandemic emergency, data shows more than 5 out of 6 Oregonians are keeping their Oregon Health Plan (OHP) or other Medicaid benefits.
Oregon’s 85 percent renewal rate is the third highest in the nation according to Kaiser Family Foundation’s comparison of state renewal rates.
There has been a 2.7 percent increase in renewal rates over the last month, due to Oregon restoring benefits for some people whose benefits had previously closed. Between the recent restorations and Oregon’s earlier decision to renew some people expected to retain benefits through the unwinding process, it is likely we will see the renewal rate decline somewhat in future months.
Oregon’s unique steps to keep people covered are also in effect: As of October 31, 14,105 people likely to qualify for Oregon’s Basic Health Program are keeping their OHP until July 2024 when the new program launches.
During the pandemic emergency, the federal government allowed states to keep people on Medicaid and did not require annual renewals.
With the end of the emergency, everyone who has OHP or other Medicaid benefits will receive a renewal notice by mid-2024. The notice will explain whether the member needs to provide additional information or take action to keep their coverage. People may be asked for additional information, including documents such as paystubs, or to review, sign and return a renewal packet.
As of Nov. 17, 2023, 919,879 people have completed the renewal process. This represents 63.8 percent of all OHP and Medicaid members.
In November, renewal letters were sent to an additional 140,780 people.
Over the last few months month, Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and ODHS responded to three issues with the renewal process:
The large number of OHP renewals, along with renewals of long-term services and supports, may cause greater wait times, delays, and possible interruptions to people’s OHP benefits. OHP members are encouraged to respond as quickly as possible after they receive a request for information to avoid any possible delays. The fastest way members can provide an update is by going to benefits.oregon.gov and logging into their ONE online account.
Members can visit KeepCovered.Oregon.gov to learn:
Community partners and providers can find resources to support members through the unwinding process at KeepCoveredPartners.Oregon.gov.
The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) are committed to transparency and will continue to send monthly information about medical coverage among Oregonians as the agencies continue to track the programs.
If you need to sign up for Medicare for the first time, contact the Social Security Administration (SSA) at 800-772-1213 to enroll by phone or find a local office. You can also enroll in Medicare online at ssa.gov/medicare/sign-up.
November 21, 2023
Media contacts: Jonathan Modie, 971-246-9139, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov
OHA launches interactive tool to increase uptake of COVID-19 vaccine among high-risk older adults at assisted living, nursing, residential care facilities
PORTLAND, Ore.—State and local health officials will use Oregon Health Authority’s (OHA) newest interactive data dashboard to track COVID-19 vaccination rates among long-term care facility residents and staff.
The LTCF COVID-19 Vaccination Data dashboard, launched today by the OHA Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI) Program, will allow epidemiologists to monitor trends in COVID-19 vaccinations among long-term care residents and staff at state, county and facility levels. The goal is to help improve facilities’ reporting of vaccinations and provide guidance on ways to increase their vaccination rates.
“This data collection is a natural extension of our program’s work to track vaccinations and support infection control in these settings,” said Dat Tran, M.D., M.S., medical director for the HAI Program. “Nursing, assisted-living and residential care facilities are still experiencing outbreaks of COVID-19, and many of their residents are at high risk for serious illness from the virus. Vaccination remains our No. 1 tool for reducing infection risk for vulnerable persons.”
Licensed nursing, assisted living and residential care facilities are required to report COVID-19 vaccination data to OHA every month. Facilities report total counts of staff and residents, along with counts of staff and residents who are up to date with COVID-19 vaccination.
The new dashboard uses the facility-reported data to show percentages of long-term care residents and staff who received the 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine. Users can filter the data by hospital region – Oregon has seven – as well as county, facility, facility type and facility characteristic.
For the 2023–2024 respiratory virus season, the definition of “up to date” on COVID-19 vaccination aligns with the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations – to reflect anyone who receives the 2023–2024 COVID-19 vaccine that became available in mid-September. Previously, the definition for being up to date on COVID-19 vaccination was anyone who received the bivalent vaccine that became available a year earlier.
Data for staff and residents who received the bivalent COVID-19 vaccine or a primary series, are no longer collected.
Through the week of Oct. 2–8, only 6% of staff and 11% of residents were reported as up to date on their 2023–2024 COVID-19 vaccination. Dr. Tran acknowledged that up-to-date vaccination rates reported so far by Oregon facilities are woefully low, which he attributes to “facilities not yet having vaccine clinics as well as limited availability of the new vaccine.” However, Oregon’s rates through that week were higher than national rates reported by CDC for nursing facilities, which were at 1% of staff and 9% of residents.
In Oregon, up-to-date COVID-19 vaccination rates are lowest in Region 6 (1% of staff and 5% of residents) and Region 7 (2% of staff and 8% of residents). Of the 528 total facilities statewide that reported, 76% (403) reported zero staff and residents were up to date.
There are ways long-term care facilities can improve vaccination rates among staff and residents, Dr. Tran says. OHA has developed a toolkit with strategies employers have used to increase influenza vaccination rates, and they can be used for COVID-19 vaccines as well.
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November 17, 2023
Media Contact: Amy Bacher, 503-405-5403, amy.bacher2@oha.oregon.gov
Insurers paid hospitals vastly differing amounts for the same COVID-19-related procedures across Oregon
SALEM, Ore. - Oregon Health Authority (OHA) released a data brief that shows how much commercial insurers paid hospitals for COVID-19-related treatments in 2021.
The COVID Payments Data Brief looks at data for six common COVID-19-related procedures that account for more than $40 million paid by commercial insurers to Oregon hospitals in 2021. It highlights the median amount paid to hospitals for each type of procedure, how many of each procedure was performed, and the typical range of payments the hospital received.
Commercial insurers paid Oregon hospitals widely varying amounts for the same COVID-19 procedures, not only from hospital to hospital but also within the same hospital. For example, insurers paid hospitals a wide range for inpatient hospital stays that included treatment with remdesivir, an antiviral medication approved for hospitalized COVID-19 patients. The median payment was $5,506 per day, with the range of payments across hospitals from $4,167 to $7,631.
This report sheds additional light on the cost of the COVID-19 pandemic. As Oregon continues to recover from the pandemic, understanding cost and utilization of services is vital in ensuring Oregon can meet the health care cost growth target.
For more information about OHA’s Hospital Reporting Program, visit Oregon.gov/oha/HPA/ANALYTICS/Pages/Hospital-Reporting.aspx or contact hdd.admin@odhsoha.oregon.gov.
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November 16, 2023
Media contact: Afiq Hisham, 971-273-3374, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov
PORTLAND, Ore. – State and local health officials have identified multiple children in Oregon with elevated blood lead levels after they ate certain pouches of applesauce called WanaBana Apple Cinnamon Fruit Purée.
The elevated blood lead reports follow a safety and recall alert from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in late October warning parents and caregivers against buying or feeding the product to young children.
As of Nov. 15, local public health investigators have found a total of six cases of elevated blood lead levels in children who ate WanaBana Apple Cinnamon Fruit Purée. The children live in Lake, Lincoln, Multnomah and Washington counties. Some of the families learned about the FDA alert through local news and online media reports that prompted parents and caregivers to report possible exposure to health care providers.
WanaBana Apple Cinnamon Fruit Purée is distributed nationwide through retailers including Dollar Tree, Amazon and other online stores. Additionally, since the FDA alert Oct. 28, two other brands of applesauce products sold at Schnucks and Weis Markets have become subject to the recall, though they are not available in Oregon.
A collaborative investigation by state and local partners, FDA’s Coordinated Outbreak Response & Evaluation (CORE) Network, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is ongoing.
While WanaBana has agreed to voluntarily recall all WanaBana Apple Cinnamon Fruit Purée pouches regardless of their expiration dates, some people may have bought the product before the recall announcement. Families should check their homes and throw away any pouches they find.
“While lead is toxic for all people regardless of age, small children are especially at risk because they’re still growing and developing,” said Ryan Barker, Oregon Health Authority’s Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program coordinator. “Continued exposure over time can permanently damage their central nervous system, which may result in long-term health problems, such as learning disorders, impaired speech and brain damage.”
Signs of lead poisoning are not always easy to see and can be mistaken for other illnesses. Without a blood test, lead poisoning may go undiagnosed, especially since affected children often don’t look or act sick.
Possible signs of lead exposure and symptoms in children include:
Parents and caregivers concerned about a child’s exposure to WanaBana Apple Cinnamon Fruit Purée should contact their health care provider to request a blood test.
More information on blood testing and lead can be found on the following pages:
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November 16, 2023
Contact: 988BHCS@oha.oregon.gov.
The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) is seeking members to inform policy and program decisions on a new Behavioral Health Crisis System Advisory Committee, which will begin meeting this winter. Created through House Bill 2757 (2023), the committee will advise OHA on:
OHA is accepting applications now through Friday, Dec. 8, 2023, for two seats on the committee:
Committee members may be eligible for a $166.00 stipend for each day of work on the committee.
Please visit the advisory committee web page to find:
Please share these materials with your networks and to anyone who you think may be interested.
OHA welcomes any suggestions of people or groups to include in these recruitment efforts. If you have any questions or feedback, please email 988BHCS@oha.oregon.gov.
Everyone has a right to know about and use OHA programs and services. Some examples of the free help OHA can provide are:
November 8, 2023
Media contacts: Jonathan Modie, 971-246-9139, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov
Ask adults to mask indoors around infants, take other preventive steps to keep babies safe as new RSV immunization supply remains limited
PORTLAND, Ore. – State health officials urge Oregonians to practice everyday preventive measures to protect infants from respiratory syncytial virus, amid a national shortage of the new RSV immunization called nirsevimab.
One of three new RSV immunizations released at the start of the 2023–2024 respiratory virus season, nirsevimab – known commercially as Beyfortus, made by Sanofi – is a monoclonal antibody injection that has been in limited supply since it became available this fall.
“There has been greater-than-expected demand for this new immunization against RSV,” said Dean Sidelinger, M.D., M.S.Ed., health officer and state epidemiologist at OHA. “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has told us the supply shortage is not due to any manufacturing issues, but instead due to an underestimation of the demand for nirsevimab following its release.”
Sidelinger added, “While we know this shortage may be disappointing for parents who are taking steps to protect their babies from RSV, we do have other tools available to help protect infants through the fall and winter.”
Until national supplies for nirsevimab increase, health officials recommend people in Oregon take other steps to reduce risk of RSV transmission to infants, who are most at risk for severe illness, including hospitalization and death. Pregnant people who get a vaccination for RSV when they are 32 to 36 weeks pregnant will pass protection on to their baby so their child will not need to receive nirsevimab after they are born.
“Up to 3% of Oregon infants are hospitalized each year with RSV,” said Melissa Sutton, M.D., OHA medical director for respiratory viral pathogens. “As the holiday season approaches and we gather with family and friends, RSV is expected to increase in our communities. Now is the time to plan how you will protect newborns and other young children you might be around as you gather with friends and family members.”
Sutton said that means using the same preventive measures that protected people during the pandemic—staying home and limiting contact with others when sick, wearing a mask, covering coughs and sneezes, washing hands, cleaning frequently touched surfaces—and encouraging pregnant people and certain people 60 and older to get a new adult RSV vaccine.
“We know it’s protective to wear a mask around a newborn, especially for family members meeting that baby for the first time,” Sutton said. “Masks are very effective at reducing transmission risk and keeping that child safe.”
On Oct. 23, CDC shared interim guidance with states that includes recommending vaccine providers prioritize their remaining doses of nirsevimab for:
Additionally, CDC is recommending vaccine providers suspend nirsevimab use in children 8 months to 19 months old if they qualify for palivizumab, a preventive antibody available since 1998 for use only in medically complex infants or those born prematurely.
The federal agency also stated that clinicians should offer the new adult RSV vaccine Abrysvo (made by Pfizer) to pregnant patients, letting them know that nirsevimab may not be available for their infants after giving birth. Either nirsevimab for infants or maternal vaccination are recommended, but not both, because both provide protection to the infant.
Abrysvo is available to pregnant people at 32 to 36 weeks’ gestation during September through January, and for people 60 and older. A second vaccine, Arexvy, is available for those 60 and older. OHA officials say the supply of these new vaccines in Oregon is stable, although shortages of any new product are not uncommon as demand may be difficult to predict.
“We understand parents are frustrated over nirsevimab’s limited availability, but this shortage will not be permanent and access to the RSV immunizations will improve,” Sidelinger said. “Until supply improves, remember those basic prevention methods for keeping infants and others safe during respiratory season, and getting your influenza, COVID-19 and adult RSV vaccines.”
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November 7, 2023
Media Contact: Jonathan Modie, 971-246-9139, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov
PORTLAND, Ore. – Oregon Health Authority (OHA) is reminding people about the availability of a safe and effective vaccine against mpox following an increase in cases of the virus in recent months.
Seventeen mpox cases were reported to OHA and local public health authorities between July 20 and Oct. 31. This prompted state health officials to distribute a statewide advisory to health care providers this week, recommending they consider mpox when evaluating patients with mpox symptoms regardless of the patient’s reported risk, vaccination status or level of community transmission. The advisory also states that testing patients with rashes, lesions or symptoms compatible with mpox should be considered part of comprehensive sexual health care.
Tim Menza, M.D., Ph.D., senior health adviser for OHA’s mpox response, said Oregon saw one to three mpox cases per month before mid-summer. While the recent increase in cases since July 20 is still lower than the 10 to 15 cases reported each week at the height of the 2022 outbreak, these cases show that mpox is still spreading in Oregon.
“We never declared the 2022 outbreak over because we were concerned about increases like the one we are seeing now,” Menza said. “And it gives us an opportunity to remind folks in the community that vaccination against mpox remains a valuable tool for reducing the risk of mpox infection.”
The JYNNEOS mpox vaccine is free and readily available to anyone in Oregon who wants to be vaccinated, regardless of insurance status. It is also highly effective: According to a study published in May in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the vaccine was found to be 75% effective for those receiving one dose and 86% effective for those who had two doses.
Mpox spreads primarily through close, skin-to-skin contact. Most often, it has spread through intimate or sexual contact, and during contact with the lesions of an individual with mpox through a caregiving relationship, such as a parent caring for a child or an adult caretaker of another person.
Mpox symptoms can start between a few days to three weeks after contact. The most common are flu-like symptoms of fever, chills, sweats, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes and feeling tired. Most people will develop a rash within a few days of the flu-like symptoms; some people only develop a rash, which may start on or near the penis, testicles, labia, vagina or anus. It may also be on other areas like the hands, feet, chest, face or mouth.
People who suspect they have mpox should contact their health care provider to let them know before going in to be seen. The provider may recommend testing for mpox. Those who don’t have a health care provider can call 2-1-1 for help finding a clinic or health care provider.
For more information about mpox in Oregon, visit OHA’s mpox website or the CDC’s mpox page, https://mpoxvaxmap.org/. Vaccination clinics can also be searched by ZIP code with the mpox vaccine locator tool at https://www.oregon.gov/oha/PH/Monkeypox/Pages/vaccine.aspx.
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November 7, 2023
Media contact: Afiq Hisham, 971-273-3374, PHD.Communications@oha.oregon.gov
PORTLAND, Ore.—Oregon Health Authority (OHA) has lifted the recreational use health advisory issued for Upper Klamath, Agency, and Ewauna Lakes in Klamath County.
OHA issued the advisory for Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes on July 25, with the Ewauna Lake advisory issued on Sept. 22.
Water monitoring confirms that the level of cyanotoxins in Upper Klamath, Agency, and Ewauna Lakes are below recreational guideline values for people. However, levels are still above OHA’s educational guideline values for dogs, and owners should keep their pets away from these areas.
OHA advises recreational visitors to be alert to signs of cyanobacteria blooms. This is because blooms can develop and disappear on any water body at any time when conditions are favorable. Be aware that only a fraction of waterbodies in Oregon are monitored for blooms and toxins, so it’s important for people to become familiar with signs of a bloom, exposures and symptoms by visiting OHA’s Cyanobacteria Harmful Algae Bloom website at http://www.healthoregon.org/hab.
When recreating, people and especially small children and pets should avoid areas where the water is foamy, scummy, thick like paint, pea-green or blue-green, or if thick brownish-red mats are visible or bright green clumps are suspended in the water. Upon seeing these signs, avoid activities that can lead to swallowing water or inhaling droplets, such as swimming or high-speed water activities.
Cyanotoxins can still exist in clear water. When a bloom dies, toxins released may reach into clear water around the bloom. Blooms can be pushed into other areas, leaving behind the toxins released. There also are species of cyanobacteria that anchor themselves at the bottom of a water body, live in the sediment, or can grow on aquatic plants and release toxins into clear water.
For health information or to report an illness, contact OHA at 971-673-0482.
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