Murmurs: Housing Providers Say Funds From Insurers Have Dried Up

HOUSING PROVIDERS SAY FUNDS FROM INSURERS HAVE DRIED UP: Housing providers say Medicaid insurers are increasingly delaying or outright denying claims for short-term rent payments. These payments, provided through a program called “flex funds,” supply crucial funding for a new crop of nonprofit and for-profit companies operating sober housing often accompanied by substance use disorder or mental health treatment. Now, the companies say, their business models are being upended by the caprices of large insurance groups that control state Medicaid spending. At a December town hall hosted by the Oregon Health Authority, executives at three different providers testified that they’d been denied funding. “One by one, funding streams have dried up. The final remaining source—Flex Funds through HealthShare—ceased paying invoices three months ago,” wrote Solara Salazar, director of West Coast Sober Housing. “At this juncture, we are contemplating closing two of our seven sober homes, and we are hearing similar plans from other housing organizations across the Portland metro area.” Representatives of OHA say the agency is “aware of the issue” and is offering “additional guidance” to providers. A HealthShare spokesperson repeatedly denied there had been any changes to the program but noted that payments tripled in 2024 and pointed to a recent memo distributed by the insurance group saying the program has had “an uptick in cases of fraud, waste, and abuse, a majority of which arise from housing support requests.” The state is currently rolling out a new benefit for Medicaid recipients that will pay for six months’ rent, but people who are homeless are not yet eligible to receive it.

COUNCIL PRESIDENT’S POWERS STILL IN LIMBO: On Jan. 2, the newly elected Portland City Council will vote to appoint its president and vice president. Plenty of ink has been spilled, including in these pages, about who might win the seat. Less noticed: The council also has to decide the scope of the job. According to the current agenda, the 12-member council will adopt rules governing the president’s powers before electing the president. People familiar with the conversations tell WW that the City Council is split ideologically on the role of the president. A block of councilors wants the president to have authority to appoint members to committees and choose who chairs them. Another group of council members prefers that the council as a whole determine who sits on and chairs committees. The debate, basically, is how centralized power should be on the new City Council. One councilor-elect submitted a draft proposal last week with provisions both schools of thought tentatively agree on, among them that any councilor could send an item to a committee for discussion as a precursor to having it placed on the full council’s agenda. The city would not identify which councilor-elect submitted the draft, but those familiar with the document say he is Councilor Sameer Kanal.

GRANT BOWL ADVOCATES SLAPPED WITH $14,250 TRAFFIC IMPACT STUDY: Parents and student athletes at Grant High School have long sought to add lights and seats to the school’s sports field, known as Grant Bowl, so students can practice at night and host games on the field. But new obstacles crop up at every turn. This time, it’s a couple of disgruntled neighbors who have demanded that the city conduct a traffic impact study on the effects of increased field use. Meganne Steele, a local resident who has been vocal about her concerns with the bowl at Portland School Board meetings, also sent a message to a community group in August calling for the study. “We don’t want to unnecessarily restrict use of the Bowl, nor do we want our neighborhood spoiled by overwhelming traffic jams that spillover on side streets,” she wrote. Surveys collected by both sides of the dispute suggest that skeptics are hugely outnumbered. Still, on Dec. 3, during a pre-application conference, city officials informed Grant Bowl advocates they’d need to conduct a traffic study. Bora Architects estimates it will cost $14,250, says Virginia La Forte, who is part of the nonprofit Grant Bowl Community Coalition that’s fundraising for lights and seats at the field. La Forte says the coalition expects to shoulder the cost from donated funds. But she’s not happy about it: “We’d hate to think that they’re offloading an expense like this to a nonprofit.”

HIGH RANKING JAIL OFFICIAL IS ON LEAVE: Multnomah County has lost yet another top jail official, WW has learned. Corrections Health deputy director Tony Gaines, who was just promoted to the post in April, has been on administrative leave since Dec. 9. County officials won’t say why. The long short-staffed division has been in turmoil following an unprecedented series of 11 inmate deaths in recent years. Its most recent dedicated director, Myque Obiero, resigned in May following a vote of no confidence by staff. It’s now being run by the county’s deputy health director until the county can recruit a replacement.