The Marshallese community in Oregon hosted a RMI-US Nuclear Legacy Summit over the Memorial Day weekend as part of its annual RMI Constitution Day celebrations. The Summit brought together Marshallese and American, elders and youth, activists and researchers, survivors and students to engage in a dialogue on the devastating consequences of nuclear testing. Beyond dialogue, […]
As more islanders from the Freely Associated States (FAS) settle in the United States through visa-free terms of the Compact with Washington, island communities are becoming increasingly active with state legislatures seeking recognition and engagement. In the mid-1990s, the US Congress eliminated eligibility of Marshall Islanders, Micronesians and Palauans for federal Medicaid health insurance, and […]
Healthcare benefits for citizens of Compact nations were approved last week by the Oregon State Legislature, and will go into effect on January 1. The history-making COFA Premium Assistance Program legislation was proposed two years ago by CANN — the Compact of Free Association Action National Network — and endorsed by both Republican and Democratic […]
Efforts by the Marshallese and Micronesian community to get the Oregon State Legislature to extend health care services to citizens of the freely associated states took a step forward in January, when the Legislative Council endorsed the draft legislation and assigned it a bill number. This follows an initiative started last year, in which the […]
