After months of Marion County’s informal requests, formal letters, a rulemaking petition, and ongoing pressure with a coalition of behavioral health partners, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) finally amended rules that endangered staff and residents at treatment facilities.

A growing chorus of treatment providers is calling for changes to Oregon Health Authority (OHA) rules that are jeopardizing staff and resident safety at residential treatment facilities.

A coalition of Marion County, the City of Salem, the City of Stayton, and the Santiam Water Control District made their case in federal court today, asking the U.S. District Court to halt the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ plan to drain Detroit Lake below its minimum conservation pool this fall. Their arguments centered around concerns of harm to water for drinking, firefighting, and agriculture for more than 220,000 downstream residents.