Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to Local Voices. I'm brad Ford. Fox Twelves Hunger
Free Project needs your help. We'll tell you about the
West Coast Health Alliance that formed this week. Solves open
registration for the Fall Beach and riverside cleanups, and a
new wildlife area could open next year in Northeast Oregon.
Fox Twelves Hunger Free Project is teaming up with local
(00:24):
Toyota deators and fred Meyer to help the Sunshine Division
this month, and you can help boost donations. Matthew ksepeer
board member of the Pacific Northwest Toyota Deaters Association, joins
us on Local Voices. Matthew tell us about the Fox
twelve Hunger Free Project and how local Toyota deators are helping.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Well. As you know, September is Hunger Awareness Month, So
along with Fox twelve and fred Meyer, all the local
Toyota dealers in the Portland market are working together to
support the Sunshine Division.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
Now, local Toyota deaders have always been active supporters of
their local communities. Why is hunger such an important cause?
Speaker 2 (01:02):
Well, you know, the numbers are truly stunning. There's about
one in ten Oregonians that face food insecurity As of today,
there's more than a million Oregonians that will seek food
assistance at some point during the year. It's just such
a basic need that's not being met for so many people,
and the Toyota Dealers are committed to making a difference.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
So why team up with the Sunshine Division.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
Well, at Sunshine Division has been a trusted partner in
this area for so long, and they're not just a
charitable organization, it's really it's a lifeline for those that
face food and security in the community, and their goal
is really ensuring that no one in our community goes hungry,
and that aligns perfectly with the goals that we have
(01:47):
at Toyota.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Yeah, the Sunshine Division is just a great local group
helping defeat hunger in the area. Tell us about the
impact that Toyota Dealers are having with their support for
the Fox twelve Hunger Free Pride.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
What we've seen is that the Sunshine Division can use
their resources to really stretch the impact of every dollar
that gets donated to their organization.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
So by us helping to spread the word of.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
The Hunger Free Project and encouraging cash donations, we know
that for every dollar it's going to go a long
way with a Sunshine Division. So with that, every dollar
that gets donated to the Sunshine Division during the month
of September, there's a website that will be provided. Local
Toyta dealers will provide a matching donation up to five
thousand dollars. Like I said, for the month of September.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
Wow, that is terrific. What a great way to battle hunger. Matthew,
thanks for joining us on local voices.
Speaker 3 (02:42):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 4 (02:42):
Brad.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
That's Matthew K. Speer, a board member for the Pacific
Northwest Toyota Dealers Association. And details about Fox twelve's Hunger
Free project go to KPTV dot com to learn more
and make a donation. Oregon, Washington, California, and Hawaii are
forming the Coast Health Alliance to review medical information about
vaccines and other health recommendations from the Centers for Disease
(03:06):
Control and the FDA. Doctor Sagel Hathi, as director of
the Oregon Health Authority, we.
Speaker 5 (03:11):
Are here because our communities deserve clear and transparent communication
about vaccines, communication that is grounded in science, not ideology.
We know that when guidance about vaccines becomes inconsistent and politicized.
It undermines public trust at precisely the moment we need
(03:32):
it most, when we have already experienced an accelerating erosion
of that trust. And that is why Oregon, California, and
Washington are stepping up together, because when federal leadership falters,
our people cannot be left to navigate a patchwork of
politics and piecemeal pharmacy rules. Now the Alliance is just
(03:56):
beginning its work, but our purpose is urgent, and it
is united to provide clarity, stability, and science driven guidance
so every family in organ and across the West Coast
knows how to protect themselves this winter and beyond. Our
goal is to cut through confusion, to strengthen public trust,
(04:16):
and to make sure that every person in organ, every
family in our partner states, has the best available protection.
Here's the problem that we're solving for. Federal decisions have
stripped away transparency, They have sidelined scientific experts. The result
is your very question illustrates is confusion, not confidence. Providers
(04:38):
are left without clear rules of the road, while families
are forced to guess whether vaccines are available, recommended, and
covered by their insurance companies. And in public health, this
confusion is not neutral. It is dangerous. It delays care,
it fuels inequities, and it puts our most vulnerable neighbors
at risk. And right now, the nation's vccine guidance feels
(05:01):
like a patchwork quilt, afraid, inconsistent and with too many holes.
No families should have to play detective just to find
a vaccine for their child. Parents shouldn't have to scour
pharmacies and websites to figure out if their child can
get a flu or COVID shot. Seniors shouldn't have to
choose between paying out of pocket or skipping protection altogether.
(05:22):
Providers like myself shouldn't have to spend hours explaining shifting
rules instead of caring for our patients. And when coverage
rules change overnight, it's not the lobbyist in DC who
pay the price. It's the grandmother and Pendleton, it's the
nursing climate falls, and it's the grocery clerk in Portland.
So this alliance is about protecting people, not politics. It's
about making sure every person from the coast to the
(05:43):
cascades knows where it turned, where to turn for care.
And it is precisely those questions within the differential bounds
of our respective states, statutory and other administrative authorities. It's
those very questions that we're looking to unravel and provide
clear guidance on over the coming weeks.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
And months, Doctor hot He says they're reviewing how to
make sure health insurance will cover the cost of vaccines.
Speaker 5 (06:04):
Our goal is to ensure continued access to vaccines with
no out of pocket costs to consumers in Oregon, and
so again, there are various levers that we are actively
exploring alongside our partners to ensure that, but that is
the principle at the base of the alliance.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
Doctor Dean Seidlinger is the state Health Officer and state epidemiologist.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Our collaboration across the West Coast is not new. We
worked throughout the COVID pandemic together. The Western State Scientific
Safety Review Committee was stepped up because we were worried
about political interference and vaccine recommendations that didn't materialize. But
now we're living in a world where that political interference
(06:50):
and move away from a basis and science has happened.
So in order to reduce the confusion, the three states
working together looking towards independence, science based back disease guidance,
including vaccination recommendations, is what we have done before, and
we will do it now. We will work in each
respective state on steps we have to try and ensure
(07:13):
coverage and ensure access to vaccines, and those conversations have
started already and have been ongoing and will continue as
we try and address these access and payment issues so
that everyone who wants a vaccine to protect themselves in
their family in the fall will have access to it.
But I will site for now. What we're saying is
who should get vaccinated. We have some good evanspace recommendations
(07:37):
out of our professional organizations. The American Academy and Pediatrics
looked at recent data that showed that kids under two
have the second highest hospitalization rate after older people, and
so they're vulnerable to complications from COVID. So we recommend that,
in alliance, in accordance with the AP recommendations, that all
(07:58):
children under two six months to twenty three months get vaccinated,
and that children between two and seventeen have access to
that vaccine if they have underlying medical conditions, if they
hate live in a congregate setting that puts them at
higher risk, if they live with a family member who's
at higher risk and their parents wants them to be protected. Everyone,
every child should have access to that vaccine. Same thing
(08:21):
with adults. Adults who want access to the vaccine should
have access to that vaccine. And we have recommendations from
our professional societies from last year and expect, as doctor
Hathi said, updated recommendations soon that we can point to
for the current season rest for a vaccine. The American
College of Obstricians and Gynecologists know that pregnant people Pregnant
(08:44):
women are more vulnerable to complications from COVID and that
their babies after they're born are more vulnerable to complications
from COVID, so they recommend that all women who are
pregnant receive the COVID vaccine, and we stand by that recommendation.
So some of those recommendations are here right now. Others
will be coming over the next week or two, and
as we get things in place to assure that payment
(09:08):
and access to vaccines is available, we all announce that
as it comes up. Because these conversations are happening all
the time.
Speaker 5 (09:15):
Thanks Dean, and I would just add one point, which
is that as perhaps unsatisfying as this responses we are exploring,
as I said, a menu of approaches together with California
and Washington, learning from past experiences as with COVID, learning
from other states that have already stepped into the void
here as well and have issued standing orders, other statewide
(09:35):
clinical pathways, insurance coverage, statutory protections. Again, there is a
gamut of policy policy mechanisms that we could deploy here
to achieve the underlying objective. California and Washington each have
their own statutory frameworks, each have their own timelines. California,
for instance, their legislative session ends in two weeks, and
so we may see differing timelines across the states. But
(09:58):
the goal is collectively to move as quickly as possible
responsive to the recommendations from these trusted medical organizations that
are very much still coming online, recognizing to the ASIP
meeting that's going to transpire in the next fifteen days,
and so as soon as we can. But you may
see some proposals rolled out in some states sooner rather
(10:24):
than in others.
Speaker 1 (10:25):
What happens if pharmacists won't provide vaccines to people who
are not listed by the federal governments being eligible to
get the vaccine.
Speaker 5 (10:33):
We are exploring all possible avenues for expanding access and
coverage of vaccines, including coordinated purchasing and access programs, availing
of existing resources and initiatives like the Vaccines for Children program,
like Vaccine Access program. In organ there is infrastructure in place,
(10:54):
we have prior experience, We know what works from the
COVID nineteen pandemic, and so again, the goal here is
one combat misinformation to ensure continued coverage of vaccines, and
three safeguard access more broadly, especially for most vulnerable communities.
(11:17):
And so access very much is part of that equation.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
That's doctor Sagel Hathey, director of the Oregon Health Authority,
and doctor Dean Sidling or the State Health Officer, with
details on the new West Coast Health Alliance being formed
by Oregon, Washington, California, and Hawaii to review vaccine guidance
for the federal government. Solves Open registration for the Beach
and Riverside cleanup September twentieth through September twenty eighth. ESTRAA
(11:43):
Valdez Wassolved joins us on Local Voices to explain what's involved.
Speaker 4 (11:47):
The Fall into Action is our seasonal campaign and it's
running from September through November. It's all about encouraging community
members to get involved, give back, and take action for
the environment this season. At the heart of the campaign
is a beach and river side cleanup. It's happening from
September twenty through twenty eight, so it's just right around
the corner. It's one of the largest volunteer events of
(12:08):
the year, and it helps mobilize volunteers to clean up
local rivers, beaches, and waterways.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
So the beach cleanup is how this whole thing started,
How Solves started. Tell us about the beach cleanup and
how people can take part in that.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
The first beaching riverside cleanup was back in nineteen eighty six,
and since then, volunteers have collected over two point five
million pounds of litter and marine debris across Oregon. That's
about the same way as six Boeing seven four seven
airplanes and incredible impact when you really think about it.
There's a way a few ways people can get involved.
(12:43):
You can host your own event and we'll support you
with all the tools and resources you need, and you
can volunteer at an existing event near your community. Or
you can simply help spread the word. Every bit makes
a difference.
Speaker 1 (12:55):
So there are three days of global significance during the
Beach and Riverside clean Up. What are those days?
Speaker 4 (13:02):
This year's Beach and Riverside Cleanup is especially meaningful because
it spans several key environmental dates, giving volunteers a chance
to be a part of something both local and global.
We're aligning with the International Coastal Cleanup Day on September twentieth,
which is the world's largest volunteer effort to clean our coastline.
(13:22):
SAUL is partnering with the Ocean Conservancy to amplify the
local impact of part of this global initiative to eliminate
trash from the beaches and waterways. And then on September
twenty seven will mark National Public Lands Day, and this
is the nation's largest single day volunteer event for public lands.
We're proud of partner with the National Environmental Education Foundation
(13:44):
to strengthen the connection between people and nature to help
educate and cultivate the next generation of environmental stewards. And finally,
we'll wrap up the week on September twenty eighth with
World Rivers Day, a global celebration of our rivers and
a powerful reminder of the need to protect these vital waterways.
Speaker 1 (14:03):
So during all of the Fall into Action events, how
many projects are available and how do people register?
Speaker 4 (14:09):
During our beach and riverside cleanup that's happening on September
twenty through twenty eighth, we are having over seventy events
statewide and in Southwest Washington as of September fifth, So
as of today, there are over seventy projects that folks
can get involved in. We have twenty beach cleanups along
the coast if you're interested in heading that way or
(14:29):
live nearby, and over ten restoration and hybrid projects that
are taking place.
Speaker 1 (14:33):
And can people create their own projects?
Speaker 4 (14:36):
Yes. You can go onto our website at volunteer dot
solforgan dot org and from there you can apply to
become a leader to get started, or you can check
out our calendar. With all of these amazing events that
are happening, we would love to see more volunteers come
out to these projects.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
Austraia, thanks for joining us on local Voices. That's Astraya
Valdez Withsolve, which is open registration for the beach and
riverside clean up September twentieth through September twenty eighth, there
are more than seventy projects. Go online at solve dot org,
define a project near you, or create your own project.
Fire season is a risk to homeowners and renters, and
(15:15):
if you don't have proper insurance in your house or
your rental burns, your loss can be devastating. Kent and Brian,
president of the Northwest Insurance Council, joins us A local
voices ken what's the biggest problem for homeowners and renters?
Speaker 6 (15:28):
Well, a problem that we have seen increasingly across the
country and here in the Northwest is people who are
under insured. They have an insurance policy on their home,
but they purchase an actual cash value policy that does
not increase the amount of money available over time as
inflation affects the cost of rebuilding. And in some cases
(15:50):
people have found out after the disaster occurs that they
have insurance coverage but not enough to fully replace their
home and its contents.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
So when you look at the policy, how can you
tell if your policy is like a fixed rate policy
or if it adjusts and then what can people do
about it?
Speaker 6 (16:09):
Well, the best and smartest move for consumers is to
check in with their insurance agent or their company to
find out exactly what their policy covers. If they have
an actual cash value policy that's not growing with inflation,
isn't taking into account changes in building codes that might
require additional construction costs, or simply keeping up with the
(16:30):
cost of replacing homes at a time when construction costs
are rising pretty dramatically. They can adjust their policy, they
can get a different policy, They can shop around for
other coverages, but it starts with a call to your
company or your agent to make sure you understand what
your policy covers and where it may fall short.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
And is there a significant cost difference between those policies.
Speaker 6 (16:53):
In general, there's probably going to be a fairly decent
cost difference in the premium or a replacement cost policy
versus an actual cash value policy. And the more of
these benefits that you want, the higher that premium is
going to be. So these aren't going to be for everyone.
But the first place to investigate it is with your
(17:16):
company or your agent, just so that you know what
your options are, what options are actually available to you,
and what they could cost you.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
And do all insurance companies offer these policies or is
it best to shop around.
Speaker 6 (17:29):
First check with your company to see if they offer
that policy and whether or not you qualify for it.
But not every company does offer replacement cost coverage, and
some that do may not offer it on every type
of insured risk. Some homes that are older, built out
of certain specific kinds of materials, that have a lot
(17:50):
of interior work that's difficult to replace or accessively costly.
They may not offer those policies for every type of home,
but for for much of today's home owners market, those
policies are available, and it's a good idea to shop
around and see which one best meets your needs.
Speaker 1 (18:08):
What's involved in determining replacement cost on a home, and
do you have some tips?
Speaker 6 (18:13):
Your home's value is going to be different than its
cost to be replaced, so you know what's on the
tax rolls, for example, and what you see on real
estate websites about the value of your home that may
or may not reflect the actual cost to replace your home.
There are websites available your insurer can also help you.
(18:33):
I might note here that Oregon has a fairly unique
law that requires insurers, if they request it, to get
their insurance company to provide an updated estimate of what
it would cost to replace your home, So if you
haven't heard from your insurer about that in the last
couple of years, you might reach out and ask your
(18:54):
insurer to provide you with their own estimate avoidable cost
to replace your home in the event of a total loss.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Anything else you'd like to add.
Speaker 6 (19:03):
I guess a couple of things. One, I think it's
important for people to understand if they have a lot
of specialty items collectibles in their home, art collections, jewelry,
your policy probably has limits on the contents coverage. So
if you lost your home and it was a total
loss after a fire, a percentage of the total policy
(19:23):
limit is going to be reserved for replacing your home's contents.
But that's typically appliances, furniture, electronics. If you have things
that are of greater value inside your home, you might
consider getting endorsements or writers that extend or expand on
those policy limits, specifically for those high priced items.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Katin, thanks for joining us all local voices. That's Katon Bryan,
president of the Northwest Insurance Council, with information on how
to get insurance that will protect your house or rental
contents from a fire or wildfire. It's not often that
a new wildlife area is created, but what happened in
northeast Oregon. John Posten with the Oregon Department of Fish
(20:03):
and Wildlife joins us on Local Voices to tell us
about the cop Kappa Wildlife Area.
Speaker 7 (20:09):
It was a Forced Legacy project that we submitted a
grand application for but clear back in last November, and
then found out in August of this year that we
pretty interesting. We actually ranked number one in the nation
in a pretty competitive process, and the Force Legacy Program
was awarded the twenty two million dollars ask to help
(20:32):
facilitate the purchase.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
Well, tell us.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
About the area, what makes it special, where is it located,
and how large is it?
Speaker 7 (20:39):
Okay, It's area is about ten miles southwest of La
Grand portion of the property lays right on the Grand
Ron River, so there's five point six miles of Grand
Ron River frontage, and then there's six miles of Beaver
Creek that runs directly through the interior portion of the property,
(21:00):
with about thirty additional miles of perennial streams tributaries associated
with Beaver Cricket itself. A total acreage itself is a
little over four or eleven four hundred. It's super important
from a habitat standpoint because of where it lays on
the landscape. It's bordered by National forest Lands allow Whitman
(21:24):
National forest Lands to the south and to the north,
so it provides a pretty important connective connectivity corridor that
really impacts about two point four million acres when it's
all combined.
Speaker 1 (21:38):
What are some of the wildlife that live in that
area and how would they be helped.
Speaker 7 (21:43):
A big stronghold here is going to be big game
deer and elk primarily, as we stated as it's a
major migration corridor for deer and elk dominated right now
mainly by elk, but you know, we have a host
of upland game birds, a lot of species of conservation concern.
(22:03):
There's bats, owls amphibians, and then the aquatic resources associated
with this project are super important. We have federal and
state threatened schnook and chinook, salmon and steelhead. There's specific
lamp prey on the property, and then in addition to that,
there's also a boltro out that utilized the landscape. Beaver
Creek itself is very important from a fishery standpoint because
(22:27):
it's a cold water system, which you know, as we
get later into the summer months, high water temperatures are
very harmful to anadromus fish and this system has the
ability to hold onto its water temperature much longer than
the mainstam grand ron So it provides a lot of
rearing habitat for salmon.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
That's very important for fish. So it's the cop Koppa
Wildlife Area. What does cop Kappa mean?
Speaker 7 (22:52):
It's the place of the big cottonwood. As we work
through the acquisition process that the wildlife area will be
stayd owned, but it will be co managed with the
confederated tribes of the Umatilla. And there's a very strong
cultural heritage tied to this property for the tribes as well.
So Shapchan language is where cop copper originated.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
How is the USDA involved?
Speaker 7 (23:19):
So the USDA is kind of an umbrella with the
forced Legacy system. So when we submit that application, we
work through the Department of Forestry, who in turn carries
the grand application forward to the USDA. Projects are then
ranked then it comes back out. So as we draw
an umbrella around the forest Legacy program, it really encompasses
(23:42):
USDA and organ Department Forestry.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
So this would become a wildlife area. What does the
wildlife area designation itself do.
Speaker 7 (23:52):
Yeah, so it basically gives us the ability to manage
that particular piece of property for resource values. So we
can choose to manage that for fisheries values, we can
manage it for terrestrial values. Push in this instance, we're
going to manage uh, we're going to manage hard for
winter range values. We want to make sure that we
(24:12):
have adequate forage on the landscape as those animals begin
to migrate out of the higher elevation summer ranges which
are on public land, so that when they show up
to these winter range lands there's an adequate forage base there.
The other thing it does is is it presents us
with you know, we're able to restore a public access
(24:33):
component to this as well, whereas this particular ground has
not been available to the public for several decades. And
what this will do is it's going to it's going
to create an opportunity for the public to utilize the
land base, whether it's for fishing and hunting values or
just general recreation wildlife watching, bird watching. But it also
(24:53):
opens up the door with the working MoU with the
confederated tribes of the u Matilla to kind of go
back to where they what were culturally significant opportunities for
their members. And you know they're going to really be
able to focus on first foods, a lot of roots, berries,
potential Darnelk acquisition. So it's just it's it casts a
(25:18):
very large loop of the folks that are going to
truly benefit it from this. From a public access standpoint
and a fish and wildlife standpoint.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
It sure sounds like a huge opportunity. Who currently owns
the land and then what's necessary to turn it into
the wildlife area.
Speaker 7 (25:34):
So current ownership is the Harry A. Murlow Foundation. Just
a little bit about Harry Murlow. He had a tremendous
vision for how he wanted to see this property managed
and he did an incredible job of managing it as
a working land with fish and wildlife values. And I
(25:55):
can't state that enough. I mean, it is it is
an extremely good shape from fish and wildlife habitat standpoint,
and that's usually that's not the case in these in acquisitions,
and we're super fortunate in this process we're going to
literally be able to inherit the property and basically turn
it into the state wildlife area that has high functioning
(26:17):
fish and wildlife habitat and high functioning fish and wilife values.
And I think that's a very important thing. I cannot
commend what Harry has done with his vision and with
his help. He has an on site manager that has
been his right hand man, and all of these efforts
and what they have done on the landscape can it's
just super important. Right now, we're in the process of
(26:42):
going through appraisal and obviously sales price is pending subject
to appraisal, so we're working through that now and that's
really the last steps in this process. And once we
get through this, potentially we could close on the property
sometime in mid twenty twenty six with incorporation into an
(27:03):
ODFW Wildlife Area. At that point, where we would once
we've taken title to the property, we would work through
a management plan process. It's a very open and transparent process.
The general public to have an opportunity to comment on
the management plan, and that's an important part for us
because we really want to be able to focus and
share what this working MoU will be like with the
(27:25):
Confederated Tribes of the U Matilla, so that everybody has
a clear understanding of where we're heading and what we
want this vision to look like going forward.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
So you mentioned public access in the future, is it
possible to predict how long that might be.
Speaker 7 (27:40):
If we were to close in early twenty twenty six,
public access would initiate immediately. You know, we have several
wildlife areas where we have winter range closures on those
landscapes where we really want to capture big game and
hold them there to avoid problems with the other adjacent landowners,
and this one may fall under those under that type
(28:01):
of management guidelines. But the big thing right now is,
you know, we are so fortunate because again it has
been managed so well, and the important thing is it
was managed as a working land. You know, there was
active timber management on the land base. They're utilizing a
prescribed grazing program that really does a great job of
conditioning forage so that you know, they they're removing in
(28:22):
decadent grass over the course of the summer and then
utilizing fall rains to get a green up in the
fall that really benefits big game animals that show up
during the migration. So this is just a tremendous opportunity
for us. And then when you start and scaling that
back and looking at the aquatic resources again, I mean
you're talking about a federal and state list threatened species
(28:44):
and salmon and steelhead here, and with Beaver Creek being
a cold water system, there's a lot of benefit to
being able to provide some rearing and protection and basically
migration habitat for those salmon as they get ready to
migrate out to the ocean.
Speaker 1 (28:59):
John, what a great opportunity. Anything else you'd like to add?
Speaker 8 (29:02):
I think it's important to mention that you know, this
project doesn't get to the finish line without the partnership
that was created here. And this is a four legged
stool where we have the Forest Legacy Program, Confederated Tribes
of the Umatilla, Oregon Department of Fishing wil Life, and
the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and all four entities here
(29:23):
are have been critical from beginning to end in this process,
and I think it's important that we recognize that because again,
we do not get from start to finish without the
participation and assistance from all four of those entities.
Speaker 1 (29:39):
John, thanks for joining us on local voices. That's John
Posten with the Oregon Deproment of Fish and Wildlife and
details on the proposed cop Kappa Wildlife area that will
be located near La Grand Thanks for listening to Local Voices,
I'm brad Board. You can hear past episodes on the
iHeartRadio app under the podcast tab. Local Voices is a
public affairs presentation from iHeartRadio.