Oregon Health Plan cutbacks sent more to ER

Cuts in Oregon's Medicaid expansion program in 2003 led to a 20% increase in emergency room visits by the uninsured and a nearly 50% increase in hospital admissions of uninsured emergency patients, according to a study. Changes to Oregon's Medicaid expansion program, the Oregon Health Plan, cut the number of enrollees in 2003 by 52,000, swelling the ranks of Oregon's uninsured.