Dexter Pays Tribute to Diane Lund-Muzikant in Congressional Record, Hailing “indelible mark on Oregon’s media and public health landscape”

PORTLAND, OR—Last week, Congresswoman Maxine Dexter, M.D. (OR-03) honored Diane Lund-Muzikant, a leader in health care reporting and founder of The Lund Report, by formally recognizing her life’s work in the Congressional Record, the official and permanent archive of the United States Congress. Lund-Muzikant, who passed away last month at the age of 86, was a pioneer in health care journalism and for decades made a more transparent and accountable health care system in Oregon.   

Full text of Congresswoman Dexter’s Congressional Record Statement can be viewed below and published here. 

Read the full text below: 

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Diane Lund-Muzikant--a fearless journalist, a tenacious truth-teller, and the founder of The Lund Report, Oregon's pioneering nonprofit dedicated to health care reporting. Diane passed away on Saturday, July 26, 2025, at the age of 86, leaving behind an indelible mark on Oregon’s media and public health landscape. 

Before I was elected to serve in this body, I spent more than two decades as a physician. I saw firsthand how opaque, inequitable, and profit-driven our health care system can be, and I also saw the vital role of journalists who were willing to peel back the curtain. Diane was one of those few. She understood that behind every headline about health care policy are real people--patients, families, and communities--impacted by decisions made in boardrooms and back rooms. She made it her mission to hold those in power accountable. 

 Diane began her reporting career covering local government and community issues before turning her focus to health care in the 1980's. Her work with the Medical Society of Metropolitan Portland helped illuminate the growing dysfunction in our health care system, a story too often ignored or misunderstood by the broader media. She went on to found the Oregon Health Forum to convene critical dialogue around health policy, and then, at age 70, launched The Lund Report, a nonprofit news outlet that quickly became the gold standard for health care journalism in Oregon and across the Pacific Northwest. Relentless in her pursuit of truth, Diane asked hard questions, chased hard facts, and never shied away from hard truths. She built a legacy that will long outlive her.  

Diane Lund-Muzikant embodied the best of what journalism can be: independent, courageous, and grounded in service to the public good. Her work strengthened Oregon's health care system and made our communities more informed, more compassionate, and more just.  As we continue to witness the erosion of local news and independent media, Diane's example reminds us why supporting journalists—and especially those committed to covering complex systems like health care—is essential to our democracy. 

We owe her our gratitude. May her memory be a blessing, and may her legacy continue to inspire the next generation of truth-tellers.” 

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