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West Coast leaders’ early interventions to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus seem to be working. There have been 682 COVID-19 related deaths in California, 508 in Washington and 53 in Oregon. In comparison, the state of New York had more than 10,000 deaths as of April 13. New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Adam Nagourney explored what the West Coast did right in response to the pandemic. Martin joins us.
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Oregon prisoners are concerned about the Department of Corrections’ response to the coronavirus in Oregon prisons. A group of inmates with underlying medical conditions are suing the DOC. And on Friday, Gov. Kate Brown issued a statement saying she would release some prisoners on a case-by- case basis. We hear from Tara Herivel, a public defense and post-conviction attorney working with inmates.
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Gigi Goodrich has been in addiction recovery treatment for months and was going to regular twelve step meetings when the pandemic hit. Goodrich sent us an audio postcard about her struggle to stay sober while maintaining social distancing.
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Moriah Ratner
/Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler is running for reelection
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