While discussing efforts to limit private investor control of medical practices, Jane Zhu, M.D., says, in part, “when private equity acquires a medical practice, prices go up, both for payers and patients, on the order of 20 to 30%” while not providing commensurate improvements of quality of care.”

OHSU contributed to a study that finds cannabis use alone is not associated with an increased risk of motor vehicle accidents, while using alcohol alone or with cannabis is.

In a story about Oregon being the first state to recommend people with COVID-19 can be in public while wearing a mask after 24, fever-free hours have passed, Esther Choo, M.D., acknowledges many people don’t want to take an at-home COVID-19 test and says, “People don’t want to deal with the limitations that knowing about a COVID diagnosis imparts. Because I think in some settings there’s still a social expectation that you don’t show up to a party with COVID. So it’s kind of like ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell.’”

A story exploring inmate deaths, many resulting from overdosing, at the Deschutes County jail cites a 2023 study by Daniel Hoover, M.D., that found almost half of people who use illicit drugs in rural areas have recently been incarcerated.

OPB-TV airs a documentary about the world’s first successful heart valve replacement surgery, which occurred in 1960 at what is now OHSU, and after surgeon Albert Starr, M.D., and engineer Lowell Edwards co-invented the Starr-Edwards artificial mitral heart valve.

In a STAT News story about a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit claiming a private equity firm’s involvement in a physician practice amounts to an illegal monopoly, Jane Zhu, M.D., says, “This is a huge case. It’s sending a political signal, at least in this administration, that the legal and regulatory risk of private equity in health care has heightened.”

The Oregon Capital Chronicle covers efforts in the Oregon Legislature to reduce prescription costs, including testimony from health care professionals at OHSU regarding House Bill 4012, which would prohibit health insurers from requiring prescription drugs be dispensed by a specialty pharmacy.

In the run-up to the Super Bowl, a story about the heightened risk of gambling addiction due to wider mainstream acceptance of online sports betting includes comments from Jeff Marotta, Ph.D.: “What this did is offer a new kind of product that is much more attractive to a younger audience, who are very comfortable engaging in transactions over the internet."

A column in the Orange County Register cites new research from OHSU and UC Davis that highlights significant disparities in dementia care in the United States, especially among Latinos.

A story discussing a bills being considered by Oregon legislators to reduce prescription drug prices, including House Bill 4012, which would prohibit health insurers from requiring prescriptions drugs be dispensed by a specialty pharmacy, notes testimony from an OHSU clinician that the requirements can make it difficult for patients to access medication in a timely way.