Broken pipes, short session bills, and Oregon’s Kid Governor!

 

Hello friends and neighbors,

Happy belated new year! I hope you had time to gather with your family and loved ones during the holidays–and that you stayed safe and warm during the snow/ice storm. I had a pipe burst on Saturday, so we had several days of no water, which was not fun. Fortunately my dad lives nearby–and we were lucky to have heat and electricity throughout, so no complaining here! 

I am a big believer in New Year’s resolutions/intentions/goals (I know some people find them corny). The first thing I did this year was delete Facebook and Twitter from my phone to try to cut down on distractions. I’m also planning to read more books this year; I just started Sailing True North: Ten Admirals and the Voyage of Character by Admiral James Stavridis. Next up I’m planning to read The Storm Before the Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic by Mike Duncan.

I am excited to see what 2024 has in store! 

Downtown Tigard at sunset this past week during a brief break from the snowstorm.

While this winter weather can be beautiful, it can also be dangerous. Washington County has been providing resources like no-turn-away shelters and other emergency services available to everyone. Stay up to date on the severe weather conditions and the resources available to the community. As the ice continues melting, I hope everyone is staying safe and warm. 

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My 2024 Bills 

With the 2024 legislative session rapidly approaching, I want to give you a preview of two of my priorities. Since it is a short session this year (February 5 through March 10) each office can draft two bills. Here are mine!

Strengthening Oregon’s Corporate Practice of Medicine Law

My first bill is about ensuring doctors, nurses, and other providers are in charge of patient care as owners and administrators of medical practices. There has been an unprecedented increase of corporate investment in primary care over the last 10+ years, producing bad outcomes for patients.

What happens when private equity and large corporations invest in medical practices? 

Time and time again, investments in medical practices from private equity corporations have negative and often dangerous consequences for the patients. When private equity interferes with everyday medicine, there are higher costs for patients, more unnecessary procedures, and other bad outcomes. 

Why now?

We have seen an unprecedented increase in corporate investment in health care in the last decade. According to the New England Journal of Medicine, there was a jaw-dropping 100,000% increase in private investment in primary care, growing from just $15 million in 2010 to over $15 billion in 2021. This is a massive change, and it comes with many negative consequences for patients.

Just last fall, Providence signed a new contract with a private equity-backed anesthesiology group, which has contributed to months of delays in surgeries. Some of these surgeries are time sensitive and life threatening. One patient who had his procedure delayed said this to the Oregonian: “There are people who are going to die because of this. I may be one of them.”

The New York Times has written about this phenomenon of private equity investment in health care; you can read about the negative impacts here. 

What does the bill do?

1. Modernizes statewide regulations to ensure that medical practices are owned and operated by doctors (closing a loophole for LLCs and LLPs.
2. Limits the kind of contracts private equity corporations can make with medical practices (closing a different loophole that allows firms to circumvent the corporate practice of medicine law).
3. Prohibits non-compete agreements, non-disclosure agreements, and gag clauses to promote transparency and ensure physicians can continue to practice without interferences. 
4. Requires medical practices to disclose who owns them for transparency and accountability. 

This bill is about keeping patient care decisions in doctors’ hands–and out of corporate boardrooms. It is about safeguarding the interests of Oregon’s patients who deserve high quality healthcare. 

Homecare Modernization Act (aka Agency with Choice)

My second bill focuses on modernizing Oregon’s Homecare Commission. Oregon’s hardworking homecare workers are facing many significant challenges as they try to navigate an outdated and clunky system. 

                       

Testifying before the House Early Childhood and Human Services Committee with SEIU Local 503 Executive Director Melissa Unger

What challenges are Oregon homecare workers facing?

There are some significant challenges plaguing the current system. Chronic payroll issues (sometimes leading to very late pay), lack of a recruitment and hiring process, no system to cover absences, no HR department, massive labor shortages– to name a few. 

All of these issues have left homecare workers and their clients to fend for themselves, placing unnecessary burdens on the overworked and underpaid workers. We need to create stability for these workers if we expect them to stay in these difficult jobs–and we need to ensure that clients continue to receive the care they need without disruption.

How can Agency With Choice solve these issues? 

Put simply, this bill would fill in those missing gaps. It would introduce a third party entity with a Medicaid-recognized service delivery model called Agency With Choice. Agency with Choice would act as a new statewide system that takes on the burdens of recruitment, payroll, and other administrative tasks. It would also still allow the in-home patients to have full control of their services, just without the added responsibility of being an employer. This solution is mutually beneficial for all parties, including the state, and offers a stable intermediary resource for both the homecare worker and their clients. 

It is time for Oregon to modernize our system to ensure that vulnerable seniors and all people receiving care, and homecare workers themselves, are getting the support they need.

If you have any questions about either pieces of legislation this 2024 session, feel free to reach out at rep.benbowman@oregonlegislature.gov. 

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Other Priorities During the 2024 Legislative Session

These are just my two bills, but there are two big issues that are expected to dominate the attention and resources of the legislature in the short session:

1. Meaningfully addressing Oregon’s addiction and public safety crisis– there is a new Measure 110 committee that is drafting a significant policy and investment proposal. 
2. Building more housing! Governor Kotek’s office is working on a proposal to make it easier to build affordable housing, while at the same time, protecting our land use system. You can read more about the Governor’s proposal here.

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Oregon Kid Governor

Huge congrats to my constituent, Zoya Shah, recently elected as Oregon’s Kid Governor! From Findley Elementary School, Zoya campaigned around the theme “Creating Mental Health Awareness in Kids”. Her first action as Oregon Kid Governor is to create a club: Club Might Minds, where everyone is welcome to share their feelings and fears. I am very excited to have HD-25 represented by Zoya! 

2024 Kid Governor, Zoya Shah (Beaverton Valley Times)

 Learn more about Oregon’s kid governor program here.

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Future Caucus Strengthening Democracy Innovation Fellowship

Lastly, I wanted to mention a cool opportunity that I was just selected for: the Strengthening Democracy Innovation Fellowship through the Future Caucus. This fellowship will allow me to learn more about shaping policy with the future in mind, and bipartisan collaboration. 

Here’s why I’m excited about this opportunity: The public’s trust in government and other institutions is at a historic low across this country. In this time of political polarization, we need our government to work better. We need to prove that we can still come together and solve problems – but we can’t do that without a functional, responsive, and agile government. 

I am proud to serve on a new workgroup focused on improving government oversight, accountability, and effectiveness in Oregon, and I see this fellowship as complementary to that work. I’m hoping this fellowship will help me identify solutions, big and small, to help restore that trust.

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Constituent Coffee

If you have more questions or concerns you would like to chat about in-person, join me for my monthly constituent coffee hour at Symposium Coffee on Saturday, February 3rd at 11am. Let’s have a conversation about what matters most to you! 

Thanks for reading and happy new year,

 

 

Ben Bowman

Oregon State Representative

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