POLITICS
Healthcare horror stories punctuate Wyden town hall in Salem
Bill PoehlerSalem Statesman Journal
Aug. 13, 2026, 5:22 p.m. PT
The mother who can’t afford insulin for her child with diabetes. A city where no pharmacy will take the insurance plan most people have. People who have had to declare bankruptcy because of medical bills
For two hours, dozens of people told Sen. Ron Wyden,Rep. Andrea Salinas and State Rep. Lesly Munoz about how difficult it is to access health care in Oregon during an Aug. 13 town hall at Chemeketa Community College
Wyden said the United States is projected to spend $6 trillion on health care this year
“I just heard over two hours, and I said not a bad point in the house, is I think what the community is saying is they want this community nightmare to be brought to an end,” Wyden said
“They told me all kinds of stories about these horrible kind of situations, and they want new policies that will turn the dreams of good coverage, good, affordable coverage into a reality. So that’s what I’m working on.”
Wyden and Salinas said they support the long-debated Medicare for All proposal that would create a universal health insurance for everyone in the U.S. and eliminate private health insurance
A Yale study projected that universal health care could save $1 trillion and 4,000 lives every year in the United States
How House Resolution 1 is impacting health care in Oregon
Since House Resolution 1, also known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed in 2025, health care systems have sounded the alarm about how the cuts it imposed are preventing them from providing proper care
Salinas said the bill has exposed the flaws in health care in the United States
“It’s not a system, right? There is no system. It’s amalgamated pieces of health care that we try to put together and it’s exposed all of the flaws and all of the wounds and holes in this,” Salinas said. “How do we make sure that everybody has access to preventive care?”
Hospital systems have struggled, such as when Santiam Hospital said it would become insolvent if it didn’t get to merge with Salem Health
Estimates are Oregon could lose more than $400 million in funding in 2027 and $1 billion per year in 2028 due to cuts from H.R. 1, said Trevor Phillips, an emergency room physician in Salem
“Since HR 1 was passed by Congress last summer, I have seen tremendous fear from patients afraid they would lose their coverage,” said Phillips
Maddie Leutwyler of Salem Free Clinic said 30% of the clinic’s patients have insurance through the Oregon Health Plan, but are unable to access medical care
Munoz, the state representative from Woodburn, told a story about how while she was growing up her family couldn’t afford an ambulance ride. After passing out in a physical education class at school, she awoke on a backboard and had to persuade the medics to let her out of the ambulance
“I don’t want Oregonian children to have to make tough decisions,” Munoz said
Bill Poehler covers Marion and Polk County for the Statesman Journal. Contact him at bpoehler@StatesmanJournal.com
