12 insurers erroneously denied reproductive health claims, Oregon says
Twelve health insurance providers in Oregon failed to fully comply with the state’s Reproductive Health Equity Act, according to a report from the Division of Financial Regulation at the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services. The report says all 12 insurers applied copays, coinsurance and deductibles not permitted by the 2017 law. Some also denied claims that should have been covered. (Sydney Wyatt/Statesman Journal)
Filing error could hamper Josephine County hemp moratorium
Josephine County is one of three in Oregon with a moratorium on the issuance of new state licenses to grow hemp. But the ban wasn’t renewed on Jan. 1 as originally scheduled because local officials filed their paperwork with the wrong state agency. The moratorium is designed to block people from illegally growing marijuana under the guise of growing hemp. Hemp and marijuana are two varieties of the cannabis plant, but hemp has extremely low levels of THC, the psychoactive substance found in cannabis. (Shaun Hall/The Daily Courier)
Aurora chicken facility plans major expansion without public input
A chicken growing facility in Aurora, Oregon, will double in size and potentially triple the number of birds it grows every year, according to plans filed with the state. The ranch grows chickens for Foster Farms and can carry out the expansion under its existing permit, which requires no public involvement. That’s angered some neighbors in Aurora, who worry about the expanded farm’s effects on water and traffic. Proposed industrial chicken ranches in Linn County have prompted a bill in the Legislature to stop the state’s agriculture department from allowing new or expanded poultry feeding operations. (Bill Poehler/Statesman Journal)
UO exhibit celebrates Eugene’s lesbian legacy
The University of Oregon’s Museum of Natural and Cultural History has opened an exhibit paying tribute to Eugene’s lesbian community. The exhibit includes a vast oral history of lesbian people in the city, featuring 83 different narrators. “The young people I’ve talked to are so moved by it, and they see their own lives,” said 72-year-old Enid Lefton, who shared her story for the project. The “Outliers and Outlaws” exhibit runs through 2023. (Jasmine Lewin/KLCC)
Snowpack in northeast Oregon remains strong
Despite the lack of big snowstorms in northeast Oregon last month, snowpack levels remain strong in that portion of the state. Snow-water equivalent on Feb. 1 met or exceeded levels recorded at the same time last year for 17 out of 18 monitoring stations in northeast Oregon. There’s still a long way to go in the snow season, but water managers are taking current snowpack levels as a positive sign for the summer water outlook. (Jayson Jacoby/Baker City Herald)
