After two seasons with the Texas A&M Aggies, it looks like Oregon Ducks’ wide receiver Evan Stewart will have a real opportunity to make a splash in Eugene. A relatively new member of the Oregon football team, Stewart joined the Ducks via the transfer portal.

And he sure is talented.

By bringing Stewart out of the SEC and to Eugene, the Oregon Ducks added a potential game-changer to their receiving corps. Stewart made an impact for the Aggies and performed well in the SEC as a young player. 

Now with a couple seasons of experience and heading into the Big Ten, Stewart has the attention of the good folks over at Pro Football Focus (PFF). Ahead of the 2024 Oregon football season, Stewart has landed on PFF’s list of wide receivers to watch (specifically as it pertains to where he could wind up in the 2025 NFL Draft).

Still, even with the NFL draft lens, that’s a noteworthy preseason accolade watch list to be on. 

Stewart is someone who has had the opportunity to demonstrate his skills and potential, but he’s really going to have a great chance to shine in Will Stein’s offense. Plus, he’ll have Dillon Gabriel chucking the ball around.

He should certainly have a shot to build upon the 91 career receptions and six career touchdowns that he accumulated at Texas A&M.

At 6-feet-tall and 175 pounds, Stewart isn’t a wide receiver who will regularly physically dominate a lot of defensive backs, but he’s got a solid frame and will be a valuable asset for Oregon’s offense as the Ducks head into this season.

During his freshman season with Texas A&M back in 2022, Stewart snagged 53 passes for 649 yards, averaging things out to 12.2 yards per reception. That’s not bad, but it wouldn’t be shocking to see Stewart involved in stretching the field a bit more.

Stewart only managed to play in eight games for the Aggies in 2023, but he did record 514 receiving yards and averaged 13.5 yards per catch. 

All that said, A&M’s offense really wasn’t all that remarkable over the past few years. And the Ducks are sure to have a much more exciting scheme that allows Stewart to experience more explosive plays. That’ll be fun for everyone involved.

Nearly a year after Baker City saw its only birth center close, U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden has unveiled a plan to prevent more rural and underserved communities from becoming “maternity deserts.”

On Monday Oregon’s senior senator in Washington D.C. outlined draft legislation designed to increase the flow of federal funding to hospitals that otherwise might close their maternity units because of reduced demand. Wyden’s legislation follows other efforts to address the trend of hospitals increasingly closing costly maternity units.

“We can’t just sit by and turn these communities into sacrifice zones,” he said. “That’s what’s happening if you don’t have rural healthcare and you can’t deliver babies.”

Nearly a quarter of rural hospitals, or 267, stopped providing obstetric services between 2011 and 2021, according to research from health care consulting firm Chartis. Meanwhile, the U.S. has seen notable increases in maternal mortality, with some states seeing their rates double.

Wyden said Oregon saw a “textbook” case of what can happen after the closure of a birth center in Baker City last year. Saint Alphonsus Health System closed its birth center for the small eastern Oregon town, despite opposition from community members as well as Wyden and other elected leaders.

Wyden noted that since the closure, expectant mothers in Baker City now have to drive at least 45 minutes to the nearest hospital in La Grande on a road that is sometimes impassable because of winter weather or wildfires.

“Closures like these are driven by stark economic realities facing the hospitals, as well as efforts by large hospital chains ‘streamline’ their business at the expense of young families,” he said.

Wyden’s legislation would increase Medicaid payment rates for labor and delivery services at eligible rural and “high-need” urban hospitals. Hospitals that see low volumes of births would receive “standby” payments under the legislation to cover the costs of obstetric staffing and maintenance costs. These hospitals could also receive payment adjustments for labor and delivery services with the requirement that they stay in the community.

Additionally, the legislation would require states to study and report to federal authorities the costs of providing labor and delivery services in rural and underserved areas. States would also have to provide women with 12 months of postpartum Medicaid coverage.

Saint Alphonsus announced the closure of its Baker City maternity unit with only four weeks’ notice, which was pushed back by a month with the help of federal funds to help staff it. Wyden’s legislation would require hospitals to give additional notice of maternity unit closures.

Wyden said he did not know if his legislation would help Saint Alphonsus reopen its birth center. Saint Alphonsus did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Lund Report.

The Hospital Association of Oregon expressed support for the proposal in a statement issued by Wyden’s office, saying rural hospitals deliver one in six babies in Oregon.

Wyden didn’t have details on how much the legislation would increase Medicaid rates. The legislation is cosponsored by 15 other Democrats, and Wyden said he is optimistic that Republicans will sign on.

“The Senate is essentially a very rural institution,” he said.

Legacy Health’s move to close its maternity unit at its Gresham hospital also sparked headlines and community opposition in 2023. The health system reopened the maternity unit, which serves a less affluent and more diverse population in east Multnomah County, after coming under scrutiny by state and federal regulators.

In response to the situation, the Oregon Health Authority finalized rules this year that require hospitals to study how vulnerable communities would be affected by closures of vital services.

This story was originally published by The Lund Report, an independent nonprofit health news organization based in Oregon. You can reach Jake Thomas at (jake@thelundreport.org) or at @jthomasreports on X.

You may be one of the 40% of Americans who don’t vote (NBC news). Many constituents express that voting feels like a futile effort because their voice appears to be nothing more than a single drop in the ocean. On the contrary, that notion couldn’t be further from the truth. In Wilsonville, Oregon, the City Council introduced two resolutions to modify the charter that established term limits in 2020; thanks to the power of your vote, the charter remained favorable to the people of Wilsonville. 

The first measure determined whether or not a two-term city councilor could serve two additional consecutive terms as mayor (ci.wilsonville.or.us). While the suggested addendum may not appear to be drastic, it would still inhibit the circulation of new people and ideas. In comparison to the three branches of government, the city council is tied to the functions of the legislative branch, while the mayor is associated with the executive branch. Therefore, this measure would allow a lateral move from the council to mayor and vice versa. Fortunately, 56.83% of voters were against the addendum, so it will not go into effect (results.oregonvotes.gov). 

The second measure suggested an amendment to exempt the days of a councilor’s term if it were less than 365.25 days (ci.wilsonville.or.us). Constituents might make the mistake of assuming that one year is an insignificant amount of time, so taking an opposing stance is fatuous; however, if it were truly insignificant, why would it be introduced on the ballot? The explanation is simple: in one year, this individual can build a plethora of connections, an abundance of wealth, and begin to sow the seeds of their influence during this “year in the air.” Thankfully, this measure didn’t pass either- 52.89% of constituents voted against it (results.oregonvotes.gov). 

Coincidentally, if either one of these measures had passed, Mayor Julie Fitzgerald would have been permitted to seek reelection for another four year term. While this fact was never denied, few realize that the former titles of those measures violated Oregon’s statutory standards for ballot titles. This is hardly surprising, considering that the proposed measures claimed to “refine mayoral term limits”, despite already being clearly defined in the charter. It is imperative that these parameters are clearly defined, because the manner in which things are presented greatly impact our perceptions, and alter subsequent decisions. For instance, if someone were to assert the notion that dihydrogen monoxide is a dangerous chemical compound, many would swiftly agree in a panic- not realizing that the colloquial name of the substance is water. Similarly, if one were to proclaim that we needed to “refine” term limits, it implies that it’s a broad concept that needs more regulation instead of what it really is: the Mayor’s attempt to make exceptions a rule. 

It’s easy to believe that your vote is inconsequential to the final outcome of a ballot, but that doesn’t mean that’s the reality. 3,002 voters didn’t want councilors to serve an additional two terms as mayor, so they won’t. 3,319 constituents wanted a term that spanned 365.25 days or less to not be exempted when calculated, and now it will continue to (results.oregonvotes.gov). Voting is power, so it’s critical that we exercise this right- politicians will never reinforce this fact because inaction makes their acquisition of power infinitely easier.