Plus unemployment updates & a summer camp opportunity

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Friends and Neighbors,

Oregon's 2021 legislative session adjourned on June 26th at 5:36 p.m. This was a session like no other. We were able to accomplish so much for Oregonians despite the many urgent priorities and the shift to virtual meetings.

The last 15 months have been challenging. This historic assembly worked amid wildfires, ice storms, a pandemic and other attacks upon the democracy of our State. I am proud of the sacrifices you have made and how our community came together to keep one another healthy and safe. Thank you to the teachers, small business owners, caregivers, and the frontline workers who often get paid the least, but are at the highest risk of contracting the virus. You adjusted to changing guidelines and made impossible choices to keep Oregon moving forward. The sacrifices you made saved countless lives.

Despite the challenges, it was an honor to chair the House Healthcare Committee and represent West Linn, Tualatin, Stafford, Rivergrove and Durham in the legislature. I was grateful to have the support of my phenomenal office staff Kimberly and Roxy, office interns, Madison and Billie, and healthcare policy interns Jessi and Victoria. We passed a myriad of bills to expand access to healthcare including behavioral healthcare, address our housing crisis, tackle climate change and racial inequities, and finally support wildfire prevention and emergency preparedness.

I’m looking forward to spending July focused on patient care. While working this session I was only able to make at home visits with patients on Fridays and Saturdays. I’m thankful to work for an organization with healthcare clinicians willing to share my patients on the days I served in the legislature.

In August I’ll take some time off to spend with family and friends. I'm excited for in-person events to start again and I hope to see you in the coming months!
Office staff: Kimberly, Roxy, Madison, and Billie


** Post Session Town Halls

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Please join me Monday, July 26th or Tuesday, July 27th for a recap of the policies passed this session, and a Q&A. We will have two post-sessions town halls: one will be virtual, and one will be in-person, at the West Linn Library!

Virtual:
Monday, July 26th at 6pm
Register here: bit.ly/HD37townhall

In person:
Tuesday, July 27th at 7pm.
West Linn Library
1595 Burns St, West Linn, OR 97068


** Policy Highlights
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Here are just a few transformative policies my office passed from this session:
* Increasing access to physical and behavioral health care by expanding telehealth services for all Oregonians.
* Addressing pharmaceutical costs by creating a Prescription Drug Affordability Board to study the pharmaceutical system and make policy recommendations to the legislature.
* Decreasing rates of suicide or accidental deaths by firearms by requiring firearms be safely secured when not in use.
* Investing in our economic recovery through direct grants to Business Recovery Centers in House District 37
* Revitalizing our transportation and economic sectors by creating a public corporation to operate the Willamette Falls Locks, with a $7.25 million investment for repairs.
* Securing our community’s transportation infrastructure as a state-wide priority with funding for the Abernathy Bridge Project and surrounding transit improvements.

I will not stop working to bring everyone in our community along in our recovery.

I started this legislative session determined to pass policy supporting the Oregonians who have struggled over this past year and a half, and I am proud of the work my colleagues and I did. Below is a summary of what we achieved:

Helping Our Communities Heal
Recognizing that many of our communities are still in crisis, we invested $350 million in behavioral health programs to expand access to mental health and addiction services, including the new 988 crisis line, and to grow and diversify our state’s mental health workforce. Part of this investment includes residential centers and housing for Oregonians with behavioral health needs.

Education and Workforce Development
Acknowledging the impact of the pandemic on Oregon’s students and workers, we funded an innovative summer learning program, and a reinvestment into Oregon’s childcare system. We set records again this year for school funding, passing a $9.3 billion K-12 budget to prepare for students returning to school, and are working to address the racial disparities in disciplinary action in schools, so every Oregon student can thrive.

Combating Climate Change
The consequences of climate change are already here. We took decisive action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in our utility sector in Oregon and combat climate change by directing electric utilities toward 100% clean energy by 2040, while making energy more affordable for low-income Oregonians.

Economic Recovery for Every Part of Oregon
Small businesses and frontline workers put themselves at risk and carried much of the burden of the pandemic. They deserve our support, so we expanded access to capital for small businesses, and passed a bill to save employers $2.4 billion in unemployment insurance costs over the next decade. We passed a bill to protect workers from being retaliated against for reporting unsafe working conditions, and invested in rural broadband access to remove barriers to reentering the modern workforce.

Access to Healthcare
This year has shown the urgency of ensuring that everyone has access to healthcare. Oregon has continued to lead the way in expanding access. This year, we increased eligibility for additional Oregonians to receive coverage through the Oregon Health Plan, expanded access to telehealth services, and passed a bill expanding language translation in health care.

Responding to Wildfires
Last year’s wildfires were devastating, and this year’s fire season could be even worse. Climate change is intensifying fires and natural disasters. We responded this year by investing $500 million in wildfire recovery and prevention, and giving firefighters better tools to protect communities in high risk areas. The House also passed several bills to make it easier for homeowners to rebuild following wildfire damage.

Equity and Justice for All
Everyone in Oregon deserves to be safe. That means improving transparency and accountability in policing. This year, we passed bold bipartisan police reforms, requiring stronger background checks and more training for police, as well as creating a duty to report fellow officer misconduct. We also passed laws protecting the rights of Oregonians to protest peacefully, while giving police tools to intervene if public safety is at risk.

Modernizing the Legislature
Democracy works best when everyone has a chance to have a seat at the table. This year, we passed legislation to make Oregon’s government more accessible than ever before. We have made electronic and video testimony a permanent part of the legislative process. We have also invested in translation services for election materials and in-house translation services at the Capitol, so that language is no longer a barrier to participation in democracy.

A Place to Call Home
To address Oregon’s housing crisis, we invested $650 million to preserve and create more affordable housing, fund emergency shelters with access to services, fund services for homeless youth, and more. To address the long history of inequities in our housing policies, we passed legislation to bring down barriers to home ownership for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Communities. And recognizing that too many Oregonians are still impacted by the COVID crisis, we extended eviction protections for renters with funding to keep landlords whole.


** Reopening Oregon
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Today, June 30th, all remaining COVID-19 health and safety restrictions will be lifted, including mandates for masks, physical distancing, capacity limits, closing times, in-person work, K-12 schools, personal gatherings limitations, and more. The state will shift its focus to helping Oregonians and communities recover from the toll of the pandemic. Read the Governor’s Recovery Order here ([link removed]) , and her press release here ([link removed]) .

Some statewide mask requirements are still in place, following federal guidance, including airports, public transit, and health care settings.

K-12 Education, Higher Education, and Childcare

Rescinding the Governor’s executive orders for K-12 schools, higher education, and childcare will mean a shift to a more traditional, local decision-making model for communities when it comes to serving the health and safety needs of students and children.

For a safe return to full-time, in-person instruction in the fall, the Oregon Department of Education and the Oregon Health Authority will be issuing updated, advisory guidance for the 2021-22 school year. Schools will still be expected to comply with longstanding regulations around the control of infectious diseases, and to have a communicable disease management plan.

Looking Forward

Today we are celebrating an incredible achievement by reopening Oregon for business and play, but the work is not over. More vaccinations are still needed to protect every Oregonian from the virus and its more dangerous variants. OHA’s next goal is to vaccinate 80% of adults from tribes and from Black, Latino/Latina, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and Asian communities, while still working to vaccinate as much as 80% of all adults.

To meet these goals, OHA Director Pat Allen announced OHA will be expanding nonprofit-sponsored vaccination events and implementing canvassing campaigns in under-vaccinated communities.
[link removed]
What are the key differences between natural and vaccine-induced immunity? Listen to an interview with OHA Senior Health Advisor Dr. Shimi Sharief, who helped answer that question.


** COVID-19 Numbers
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Oregon Health Authority reported 230 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19, bringing the state total to 208,446. OHA has also reported 5,545 new doses of COVID-19 vaccinations were added to the state immunization registry. The seven-day running average is now 7,008 doses per day.
Find Your Vaccine Today ([link removed])


** Civics Summer Camp Opportunity
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The Oregon Legislative Education and Outreach Office is partnering with the Young Leaders Program to produce a week-long, residential summer camp this August. The camp will be located at Aldersgate in Turner, Oregon from August 16-21. It is a residential camp, following all of Governor Brown’s COVID summer program guidelines.

If you know a young person who might be interested and want to learn more you can check out the website at YLProgram.org ([link removed]) .


** Employment Department Update
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f you’re receiving Regular UI or PEUC benefits you must create your iMatchSkills account by your assigned deadline to continue receiving benefits. You should receive a letter from the Employment Department with your deadline to register.

Saturday, July 3, 2021 is the deadline for the next group of regular UI and PEUC claimants to complete Customer Registration and iMatchSkills Job Seeker profile.

The requirement to create an account in iMatchSkills doesn’t apply to people receiving Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). All PUA claimants are welcome to register in iMatchSkills to receive help finding work.

Follow thisstep-by-step instructions ([link removed]) on how to register for iMatchSkills.

Please email me (mailto:[email protected]) if you have specific concerns. Our office will do all we can to help and protect all Oregonians.

Covid-19 Resources:
Oregon Information and Resources ([link removed])
Oregon Health Authority Updates ([link removed])
Federal Government Response ([link removed])
Senator Merkley’s Response Page ([link removed])
SEIU Worker Resource Page ([link removed])
Oregon Unemployment ([link removed])

Thank you for reading and stay safe.

Sincerely,
Rachel Prusak

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