Thousands of Oregon residents, who qualify for free or low-cost health care, will see their coverage extended beyond April 1.
House Bill 4035 was recently passed in the Oregon Legislature, which will help 300,000 Oregonians who may no longer qualify for Medicaid. The law follows Gov. Kate Brown's (D-OR) plans to lift Oregon's emergency declaration by April 1.
Oregon Health Plan membership has risen from just over 1.1 million members before the COVID-19 pandemic to 1.4 million as of March 3, according to The Chronicle Online.
“Every Oregonian deserves access to quality health care. Throughout the pandemic, we worked to ensure Oregonians did not lose their health coverage –– and we must ensure they stay covered,” Brown told The Chronicle Online.
Government-funded "bridge" health plans are marketplace tax subsidies, which the state may leverage to provide health care coverage to state residents.
“The disparities in our health systems mean that black, Indigenous, Latino, Latina, Latinx, Asian, Pacific Islander, Tribal and people of color are disproportionately impacted by inequitable health care coverage," Brown said, according to The Chronicle Online. “We must develop a process to ensure everyone has access to quality health care coverage. I’d like to thank the Legislature for putting forward this pathway to create options for families with low incomes to maintain the health care coverage they need.”
