Oregon

Audit: Oregon’s drug decriminalization Measure 110 shows $33 million in grants drew scant evidence of effectiveness

Published

2 years ago

January 19, 2023

Audit: Oregon’s drug decriminalization Measure 110 shows million in grants drew scant evidence of effectiveness

Setbacks and delays hindered the rollout of Measure 110, which Oregon voters permitted in 2020 to decriminalize drug possession for private use and enhance funding for therapy providers.

That’s the message from Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, who launched an audit Thursday of the $150-million-per-year initiative funded largely with hashish tax income. It arrived towards a stark backdrop: Oregon has the second highest charge of substance use dysfunction in the US and is fiftieth within the nation for therapy entry, Fagan famous, citing 2020 figures from the Substance Abuse and Psychological Well being Providers Administration.

Among the many findings: The state’s well being authority inadequately supported the volunteer council convened to distribute grants to suppliers in all 36 Oregon counties; council members lacked experience, which slowed funding approval; and the state and repair suppliers inconsistently collected knowledge, making it troublesome to trace the measure’s effectiveness.

That sparse knowledge assortment left auditors not sure of how grant recipients spent $33 million — or how the cash improved folks’s lives.

Fagan, who referred to as Measure 110 “a matter of life and loss of life,” skilled her mom battle with dependancy. Now her brother is present process therapy. “Oregonians handed this with the expectation that folks would get higher – that they’d have entry to therapy,” Fagan stated. “These providers have to be there.”

Right here’s a have a look at 4 main takeaways from the audit:

Council struggling

The audit is the primary of three and centered on how the Oregon Well being Authority and the Oversight and Accountability Council, the volunteer physique with about 20 members from the restoration group, have carried out the measure so far. The council, whose members are eligible for stipends if their employers don’t pay for his or her participation, is answerable for allocating about $300 million in grant funding over two years.

A lack of understanding amongst Oversight and Accountability Council members and their heavy, generally complicated workload brought about delays and strained relations with the Oregon Well being Authority, auditors stated.

Whereas council members are required to have expertise in substance use restoration providers, auditors discovered they typically lack expertise in finishing up their major duty: overseeing and awarding authorities grants. And the Oregon Well being Authority, which confronted excessive employees turnover and unclear expectations about who was answerable for what, failed to supply the council with the assistance it wanted, the audit states.

Council members – a lot of whom have full-time jobs – informed auditors they spend as many as 40 hours per week finishing evaluations and attending council conferences. Their work has additionally been delayed by “unclear, inefficient, and troublesome to make use of” grant analysis rubrics.

Frustrations on the council ran excessive.

One council member reported spending over 100 hours on grant evaluations, solely to have the work returned and marked “incomplete” by reviewers with the Oregon Well being Authority. Two members eliminated themself from the analysis committee out of frustration, and 19 conferences had been canceled between February and April 2022.

To resolve these points, auditors stated the Oregon Well being Authority – not the council – must shoulder extra of the executive work, together with reviewing grant purposes and offering monetary analyses. Council members additionally want extra coaching from the well being authority on easy methods to perform their work. However each entities must collaborate on a greater system for evaluating grants that may be rolled out sooner or later, the audit stated.

Council dealing with turnover

All members of the Oversight and Accountability Council had been appointed in February 2021 and have the identical time period restrict, which ends this yr. Except state legislators revise and stagger these appointments, the complete council may flip over this yr – placing the work of the council and Measure 110 in danger, the audit stated.

Knowledge lacking

Gaps in amassing, reporting and analyzing knowledge made it troublesome for auditors to gauge Measure 110′s effectiveness.

Auditors discovered the Oregon Well being Authority awarded $33 million in grants throughout the preliminary implementation of Measure 110, however collected virtually no knowledge exhibiting how the funds had been spent or how they improved entry to substance use therapy and providers.

Well being authority officers stated most of the suppliers funded underneath Measure 110 are new to the state well being care system and might’t deal with conducting rigorous knowledge assortment. The character of some therapy providers additionally makes knowledge assortment troublesome. For instance, a supplier could supply needle exchanges however battle to get demographic knowledge from somebody employees encounter on the road.

However till constant knowledge is captured, auditors say it will likely be troublesome for coverage makers and the general public to inform whether or not Measure 110 is working, or to counsel enhancements to this system.

Providers supplied statewide

It took longer than anticipated, however each county and tribal space in Oregon now has not less than one Behavioral Well being Useful resource Community, a corporation that gives free providers by means of grants permitted by the Oversight and Accountability Council. Providers embody substance use dysfunction screening, case administration, low-barrier therapy, peer mentoring and housing.

The Oversight and Accountability Council was alleged to approve funding for networks statewide by January 2022, however failed to take action till August. Funding approval was held again by delays and “public friction” among the many council that auditors stated may have been prevented with extra assist from the Oregon Well being Authority, in accordance with the audit.

What did the audit suggest?

The audit made eight suggestions. 4 are directed to the Oregon Well being Authority and 4 to the Legislature.

The Oregon Well being Authority agreed to:

Publish its first iteration of a strategic plan for the way it will combine Measure 110 into the state’s total behavioral well being system by the tip of September.
Determine and doc methods to shut gaps in knowledge assortment and reporting by the tip of 2024.
Present higher assist to the Oversight and Accountability Council, together with conducting trainings on grant funding and figuring out conflicts of curiosity earlier than voting on funding choices.
Increase collaborations with the Division of Corrections to handle substance use problems among the many state’s jail inhabitants, together with state housing and substance abuse therapy providers.

Auditors advisable the Legislature:

Direct the Oregon Well being Authority and Oversight and Accountability Council to gather sufficient knowledge to evaluate Measure 110′s effectiveness.
Replace statutes to eradicate overlaps in necessities for a statewide substance use restoration hotline, particular person Behavioral Well being Useful resource Networks hotlines and the Drug and Alcohol Prevention Hotline.
Direct the Oregon Well being Authority to supply extra assist, help and coaching to the Oversight and Accountability Council.
Revise and stagger appointment phrases on the Oversight and Accountability Council to stop all council members from leaving on the similar time this yr.

James Schroeder, OHA’s interim director, agreed to implement the audit suggestions by the tip of 2024. Two extra audits centered on the measure’s funds and efficiency will likely be launched by the tip of 2024.

— Catalina Gaitán, cgaitan@oregonian.com, @catalingaitan_

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Oregon

Oregon State Men’s Hoops Stuns Gonzaga, 97-89 in OT

Published

7 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

Oregon State Men’s Hoops Stuns Gonzaga, 97-89 in OT

For the first time in 34 years, Gonzaga brought its men’s basketball team to Gill Coliseum.

Over nine thousand Beavers & Bulldogs fans joined them. The first sellout crowd for a Gill Coliseum men’s basketball game in five years got their money’s worth tonight: an overtime thriller that ended in a court-storming.

In the first four minutes, Oregon State raced ahead. A long-range elbow jumper from Demarco Minor gave Oregon State a 4 point edge, and then Nate Kingz stole a Gonzaga pass, drew a foul, and sank two free throws. At the first timeout, Oregon State led 13-7.

Gonzaga slashed the margin to 1 on a Ryan Nembhard wide open three-pointer, after two Oregon State defenders collided. Then, a Bulldogs’ fastbreak bucket after a Michael Rataj miss gifted Gonzaga their first lead of the night.

Teams traded buckets for the next few minutes. With 7:59 remaining, Josiah Lake stole a cross-court pass from Ryan Nembhard and flew down the floor for a Beavers layup, 25-21 Oregon State.

Late in the first half, Nate Kingz erupted. First, the former McNary HS standout spun free of a Gonzaga defender and drilled a jumper near the top of the key. Then, Kingz launched a three point bomb. The crowd surged, Gonzaga coach Mark Few hastily called for timeout, and the scoreboard lit up 35-29 Oregon State.

In the final moments of the opening period, Michael Rataj kept the pace. The German senior notched a second-chance putback layup, but Khalif Battle upset the Beaver wing’s efforts with a buzzer-beating three. At halftime, Oregon State led by the narrowest of margins, 46-45.

Gonzaga’s Graham Ike opened the second half with a game-tying layup, then seized the lead on a free-throw, and the Bulldogs went on a 9-3 run.

Oregon State pulled within 1 on a Demarco Minor stepback jumper with 12:49 left. Then, Parsa Fallah drew a pair of free throws, but the Beaver big couldn’t convert either attempt, and Gonzaga kept its advantage.

But not for long. Soon, Demarco Minor sprang open. As the shot clock wound down, the Beavers guard nailed a game-tying three pointer with 11:08 remaining.

The two West Coast Conference foes resumed their battle. Following a Nolan Hickman layup that lifted Gonzaga back ahead, Nate Kingz tied it with two free throws. Gonzaga’s Graham Ike swung the lead back to the Bulldogs with consecutive makes, 69-65 with 9 minutes left.

Gonzaga seemed poised to land another blow, ahead 76-71 with 5 minutes remaining, but Ryan Nembhard walked. Possession went to the Beavers, who climbed within three on a Michael Rataj jumper. With two minutes left, Demarco Minor brought the crowd to a fever pitch with a game tying fadeaway. Then Michael Rataj hooked one from the right elbow, soaring the Beavers ahead 79-77.

Under a minute remaining, the game got even better. Michael Rataj extended Oregon State’s lead on a beautiful layup that kissed the top of the glass before dropping through the twine, but Clackamas’ own Ben Gregg answered with a Gonzaga three-pointer.

From there, Gonzaga quickly fouled Oregon State. A pair of Beavers free throws made it 83-80 Oregon State with :20 remaining. Needing a triple, the heavily-favored Bulldogs roared back on a game-tying Graham Ike three-pointer with 4 seconds left.

Overtime swung back-and-forth as the teams traded baskets. Leading 89-87 with 2:01 left, Michael Rataj drove inside, drew a decisive fifth personal foul on Graham Ike, and strolled to the charity stripe. The extinguished Gonzaga big finished with 26 points on 9-14 shooting. Rataj calmly hit a pair of free throws, as Oregon State moved ahead 91-87 with 2:01 in OT.

The next Gonzaga possession was denied by a Josiah Lake steal. As time dwindled under a minute, Gonzaga clawed within 2 on a Braden Huff jumpshot.

They never got any closer. Liutauras Lelevicius spun free for a layup, 93-89 Beavers. Then free throws from Josiah Lake and Michael Rataj shut the door. Fans stormed the floor at the overtime buzzer, and the Beavers earned a signature win.

Oregon State moves to 14-5 overall, 4-2 in West Coast Conference play. Gonzaga drops to 14-5 overall and 5-1 in the conference, a half game behind St Mary’s. The Beavers have now won thirteen consecutive matchups against Mark Few’s blue-chip program from Spokane.

Oregon

How to watch Gonzaga Bulldogs vs. Oregon State Beavers: TV channel, live stream WCC men’s basketball game

Published

14 hours ago

January 16, 2025

Press Room

How to watch Gonzaga Bulldogs vs. Oregon State Beavers: TV channel, live stream WCC men’s basketball game

Gonzaga and Oregon State kindle a new rivalry Thursday night when they square off for the first time as West Coast Conference foes in Corvallis, Oregon.

The Bulldogs (14-4, 5-0 WCC) and the Beavers (13-5, 3-2 WCC) haven’t met on the hardwood in over 34 years, though that’s set to change for the foreseeable future as both share WCC membership for this season and next. With both set to join the new-look Pac-12 Conference in 2025-26, they’ll be seeing each other multiple times per season after not having played each other in three decades.

The Zags enter the matchup coming off a victory over another future Pac-12 foe, Washington State, on Saturday. Graham Ike led the way with 21 points on 8-for-11 from the field, while Nolan Hickman stepped up with 19 points and seven rebounds in the 88-75 win over the Cougars. Gonzaga led by three points at halftime before putting its in-state rival away with a 15-5 scoring run to open the second half.

Ike leads the country’s fourth-highest-scoring offense at 16.6 points per game. The Bulldogs’ 87.8 points per contest is also on pace to be the third-highest in program history. Senior guard Ryan Nembhard has masterfully pulled the strings as the team’s floor general, as he leads the country in total assists with 169.

Oregon State entertains Gonzaga following a 91-55 victory over Pacific on Saturday. Parsa Fallah led the way with 25 points on 6-for-7 from the floor and 13-for-14 from the charity stripe. Michael Rataj put up 15 points and nine rebounds, while Nate Kingz added 20 points. The Beavers set a new program record by going 31-for-32 (96.9%) at the free-throw line, which marked the highest free throw percentage in a game with 30 or more attempts.

Rataj, a 6-foot-9 junior from Germany, paces the Beavers at 16.6 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. Oregon State has allowed the fewest rebounds per game to its opponents (29.2 per game) in the WCC. Gonzaga, conversely, is No. 2 in the league at 40.2 boards per game.

Oregon State has been dominant at Gill Coliseum, where it’s 10-1 so far this season. In those victories, the Beavers outscored the opposition by 20.2 points. On the other hand, however, Gonzaga’s 11 straight true road wins are the second-longest active streak in the nation.

HOW TO WATCH GONZAGA VS. OREGON STATE

Who: Gonzaga and Oregon State ignite a conference rivalry between Pacific Northwest schools

When: 8 p.m. PT/11 p.m. ET | Thursday, Jan. 16

Where: Gill Coliseum | Corvallis, Oregon

TV: CBS Sports Network

Betting: Gonzaga -9.5 (-102)

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

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Oregon-set horror movie ‘Wolf Man’ opens Friday; critics call it ‘gripping enough,’ ‘not especially scary’

Published

22 hours ago

January 16, 2025

Press Room

Oregon-set horror movie ‘Wolf Man’ opens Friday; critics call it ‘gripping enough,’ ‘not especially scary’

‘Wolf Man” isn’t just the latest example of a classic Hollywood monster movie character getting a reboot, it’s also the newest horror movie to be set in Oregon. “Wolf Man,” which opens in theaters Friday, Jan. 17, follows in the spooky footsteps of “Strange Darling,” “Longlegs,” and “Cellar Door,” which were also set in Oregon.

While “Strange Darling” and “Cellar Door” were filmed in Oregon, “Wolf Man” didn’t film in the Northwest, but instead was made in New Zealand. The plot involves a married couple, Blake (played by Christopher Abbott, whose credits include “Poor Things”) and Charlotte (Julia Garner, of “Ozark” fame), and their daughter, Ginger (Matilda Firth), who are living in San Francisco.

When Blake learns that his long-missing father has been declared dead, Blake brings his wife and daughter back to the family’s rural Oregon house.

Unfortunately, their trip to Oregon goes bad quickly, as what seems to be a deadly creature injures Blake, who soon begins showing signs of transforming into something, well, wolfy.

While the idea has roots back in the Hollywood days when Universal Pictures turned out monster movies built around such figures as Frankenstein’s monster, Dracula, The Mummy, The Invisible Man, and more, the new “Wolf Man” isn’t simply a remake of the 1941 original.

Director Leigh Whannell’s previous films include “The Invisible Man” and “Insidious: Chapter 3.”

Reviews for “Wolf Man” are mixed, with some critics praising Abbott’s performance and the movie’s creepy atmosphere, while others wish Garner’s character was more developed and that the dialogue was sharper.

In The Hollywood Reporter, for example. David Rooney writes that “Wolf Man” is “gripping enough.” Less enthusiastic is Peter Debruge in Variety, who found the movie slow, soulful and not especially scary.”

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