This Legislature's efforts on health care will extend health insurance to more than 100,000 low-income children and adults. Meanwhile, it will begin the process of establishing a state health insurance "exchange" to allow low-cost, prevention-focused plans to compete for business from individuals and small businesses.

Major credit goes to Rep. Mary Nolan (D-Portland) and Rep. Mitch Greenlick (D-Portland) for their leadership on this important issue. They were tireless in their advocacy for this legislation.

Members of the Oregon Health Fund Board also deserve our gratitude. This was the citizen-based commission whose extensive study and public outreach resulted in the 2009 legislation.

Hearing Aids for Kids - 2009
At the request of a constituent, we began to look into this issue during the 2007 session. Many states already had similar laws and the idea had even been introduced in the past by Senator Vicki Walker. We worked closely with her office, OHSU, audiologists, and the families of kids with hearing loss to pass HB 2589. This law requires health insurance policies to cover hearing aids for all kids with hearing loss as long as they are dependent on their parents for financial support under IRS code.

Menu Labeling - 2009
HB 2726 requires chain restaurants to provide detailed nutritional information on their menus and drivethrough displays.

Health Care Reform Blueprint - 2007
SB 329, the Healthy Oregon Act, enacts essential health-care services for all Oregonians, including the 600,000 without health insurance, while using controls and incentives to contain costs. SB 329 funds a new seven-member Oregon Health Fund Board, which will have until October 1, 2008 to turn the act's goals and principles into a detailed health care plan.

During the session, the Healthy Oregon Act was one of two major proposals laying the groundwork for comprehensive health care reform. The other, known as the Oregon Better Health Act, was put forward by former Gov. John Kitzhaber and the Archimedes Movement. The Healthy Oregon Act wound up including may ideas and provisions of the Oregon Better Health Act. I am hopeful that the Archimedes Movement will be an active participant in the Oregon Health Fund Board's work.

Healthy Kids Referral - 2007
SB 3 set up the Healthy Kids health care program, and SJR 4 referred it to the voters for passage. Had it been passed by voters in November of 2007, the Healthy Kids plan would have provided health insurance to roughly 100,000 children, paid for by an 84.5-cent increase in the cigarette tax. It would have equalized Oregon's tobacco tax rates with those in the state of Washington, plus lead to a 60-40 match of the resulting new revenue by the federal government - leveraging additional federal dollars to provide or subsidize health insurance for children in Oregon.

School Nutrition Standards - 2007
HB 2650 sets minimum standards for fat, sugar and calories in foods sold in school vending machines and a la carte cafeteria lines. For the first time ever, the next generation is expected to live shorter lives than our present generation because of obesity and diabetes - and it's costing Oregonians in their pocketbooks as well as their lifespans. This is one small step toward encouraging Oregon students to make healthier food choices. The standards also apply to school-prepared individual entrees, but not to the larger school lunch program, which is administered and regulated by the US Department of Agriculture. The standards in HB 2650 will become effective for the school year beginning in 2008-2009.

Smoke-Free Bars and Restaurants - 2007
SB 571 expands Oregon's Clean Indoor Air Act by prohibiting smoking in bars and taverns, restaurants, bingo halls, bowling alleys, and employee lounges. It will reduce exposure to secondhand smoke, and benefit both employees and employers by reducing missed work days and decreasing health care costs.

Insurance Transparency - 2007
HB 2213 requires health insurance companies to provide patients with an estimate of out-of-pocket costs before they undergo common services or treatments. As the price of health insurance continues to rise, consumers bear more of their health care costs through higher deductibles, co-payments, and co-insurance. Oregonians need accurate and timely estimates of their out-of-pocket expenses to help them make good, cost-effective health care decisions. I was honored to led a group of patient advocates, insurance representatives, and Oregon's Department of Consumer and Business Services to write this model legislation.