Detailed Agenda

This opening session will kick off the day with some comments on the role of State of Reform and the day's content in a new era of policy and politics.

DJ Wilson: Host, State of Reform

Knute Buehler is a declared candidate for the Republican nomination for governor in the 2018 general election. He represents Bend in the Oregon House of Representatives, and is trained as an orthopedic surgeon.  He will offer prepared remarks which will be followed by a Q&A session with DJ Wilson.

Hon. Knute Buehler: Member, House Committee on Health Care

This panel of folks that work in the capitol building will bring you up to speed on the discussions, topics, and issues taking shape in Oregon health policy today. Learn about the discussions the state will be having in the 2018 legislative session by listening in on this dialog.

Jonathan Eames: President, Eames Consulting

Justen Rainey: Director, Government Affairs, Public Affairs Counsel

Tom Holt: Managing Partner, The Holt Company

Awareness is increasing about the state of behavioral health in Oregon, but there is still considerable work to do to improve the system overall.  This session will discuss some of the strategies in place for system improvement, and where things are heading in the months ahead.

Cindy Becker: Executive Director, Mid-Valley Behavioral Care Network

Lynnea Lindsey, PhD: Director, Behavioral Health Services, Legacy Health

David Pollack, MD: Professor of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, OHSU

Getting complete, accurate and timely data in health care is a difficult task. Information on pricing and quality can be difficult to find. This group of experts will talk through where the conversation on transparency is going, and where opportunities for system improvement may be.

Bill Murray: Chief Operating Officer, FamilyCare Health

Phil Schmidt: Associate Vice President for Public Affairs, OAHHS 

Mylia Christensen: Executive Director, HealthInsight

Get to know some of the folks leading health care organizations in Oregon today during this session with some of the state’s senior health system executives.  Bring your questions and create a dialog on the challenges and opportunities in Oregon health care with this panel of leaders.

David Parsons, MD: Regional Chief Medical Officer & Director of Hospital Services, Kaiser Permanente Northwest

Brad Wakefield: Chief Executive Officer, The Corvallis Clinic

Cheryl Nester Wolfe, RN: Chief Executive Officer, Salem Health

Kate Othus: Partner, Aldrich Advisors (moderator)

The social determinants are now well enshrined in the awareness of policy and market leaders. However, there is still only a limited amount of clarity around how to tie financial incentives and performance to them. This group of experts will take up the topic and share their thinking and experiences.

Mike Rohwer, MD: Executive Director, Curandi

Jim Seymour: Executive Director, Catholic Community Services

Sam Engel: Coordinator, Social Determinants of Health, Allcare Health

Legislative Democrats will join this panel to talk through their priorities, policies, and plans for the 2018 legislature, both for health care and policy in general.  Bring your questions for the Q&A period in what is always a well attended, interesting discussion.

Hon. Laurie Monnes Anderson: Chair, Senate Committee on Health Care

Hon. Mitch Greenlick: Chair, House Committee on Health Care

Hon. Rob Nosse: Vice Chair, House Committee on Health Care

The reprocurement of Oregon Medicaid has anxiety levels high for stakeholders across Oregon’s CCO community.  While there are a number of moving parts, this panel of leaders will talk through the market’s view of the procurement, and the hopes for what the vision for 2018 will look like.

Erin Fair Taylor: Executive Director of Legal Affairs, CareOregon

Phil Greenhill: Chief Executive Officer, Western Oregon Advance Health

Kevin Campbell: Executive Director, GOBHI

Ashlen Strong: Director, Public Policy & Communications, Health Share of Oregon

Where is the money leading Oregon’s health system?  What trends are we seeing in plan-provider relations related to payment?  This panel will take up these sorts of topics, and discuss the evolution in reimbursement and care financing in Oregon today.

Sue Deitz: VP, Business Development, Caravan Health

Jeremiah Dodrill: Director of Contracting, Salem Health

Justin Valley: Healthcare Business Advisor, Aldrich Advisors

The opioid crisis is now fully in the mainstream consciousness. Its impacts run across health care, human services, public safety and other safety net and care systems. This session will discuss strategies for addressing the issue, with implications for many in the healthcare system.

Sarah Winslow, MD: Opioid Task Force, Adventist Health

Nicole O'Kane, PharmD: Clinical Director, HealthInsight

Benjamin Schwartz, MD: Medical Director, Recovery Works NW

Oregon’s individual market continues to have a mixed level of performance.  Given the uncertainty around CSRs and federal funding, the market is even more precarious ahead of 2018 plan year. This session will discuss the efforts to stabilize the system, and how Oregon policy makers can support the individual market.

Jean Straight: Acting Director, Department of Consumer and Business Services

TK Keen: Deputy Administrator, Oregon Division of Financial Regulation

Dave Nesseler-Cass: Director, Regulatory Affairs, Moda Health

Brad Garrigues: Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, Providence Health Plan

Few members of Oregon’s policy and political community are as well regarded as former Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski. He is the only person to have served in all three branches of Oregon’s government, having been elected to the Supreme Court and the Legislature, in addition to the Governor’s mansion. DJ Wilson will interview the Governor on the state of politics in Oregon today, his observations of state-federal relations, and what might be on the horizon.

Hon. Ted Kulongowski: Former Governor, State of Oregon

These leaders from both the House and the Senate will discuss the policy outcomes from the last session, the work underway in the interim, and look ahead to the 2018 legislative session.  Bring your ideas, and be ready for a thoughtful dialog with this group of well-respected legislators.

Hon. Cedric Hayden: Co-Vice Chair, House Committee on Health Care

Hon. Tim Knopp: Member, Senate Committee on Health Care

Hon. Ron Noble: Member, House Committee on Human Services and Housing

Health reform may have stalled in Washington DC, but that doesn’t mean the reform conversation is complete.  Whether the US moves to an ACA 2.0 model, or a system that is wholly different from the ACA, reform after the ACA will continue.  This group of thought leaders will outline the options, principles, and possibilities for the healthcare system after the ACA.

Hon. Elizabeth Steiner-Hayward: Member, Senate Committee on Health Care

Zeke Smith: Chair, Oregon Health Policy Board

Jennifer Stoll: Vice President, Government and Public Affairs, OCHIN

From M&A activity to tiered networks, from value based purchasing to a fee-for-service retrenchment, conversations and relationships between plans and providers are evolving. This session will discuss some of the trends in these discussions and highlight models for closer collaboration.

Brent Eichman: Chief Executive Officer, Umpqua Health

Will Brake: Director, Provider Network Transformation, Allcare CCO

Dino Ramzi, MD: President, Patient Direct Care

Closer awareness of and integration between the world of physical health and oral health is increasing. It’s becoming tied to behavioral health and the social determinants, as well.  This session will discuss how the role of oral health in a broader wellness and care model is changing and developing.

Mike Shirtcliff: Chief Executive Officer, Advantage Dental

Bruce Austin, DMD: Dental Director, Oregon Health Authority

Pamela Johnson: Native Dental Therapy Initiative, Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board

While the sticker shock of specialty drugs is mitigating, the absorption of higher costs into the system continues to put upward pressure on premiums and system-level costs. This panel will discuss the strategies to mitigate cost pressures while elevating the benefits of a range of unique pharmaceutical products.

Jesse O'Brien: Policy Director, OSPIRG

Tom Culhane, MD: Adjunct Faculty, Division of Management, OHSU

Glenn Wachter: Senior Director of Business Development, Credena Health

The policy ground may be settling in Washington DC, but that is unlikely to stay stable for long.  This panel will discuss the various moving parts in the policy discussion, and what we might see come from the nation’s capital on health policy in the weeks and months ahead.

Mohit Ghose: Managing Partner, Ghose Advocacy Associates

Larry Goldman: Senior Vice President, Beacon Health Options

Regardless of some of the challenges at OHA over recent years, there is no organization more impactful to the broader health care system in Oregon than this agency. This session will look ahead, discussing the significant work the agency has before it, and charting a course for 2018.

Patrick Allen: Acting Director, Oregon Health Authority

Jeremy Vandehey: Acting Director, Health Policy and Analytics, Oregon Health Authority

Not all costs are created equal, and not all actors can have the same impact to mitigate them.  Some costs are clinical in nature and occur at the individual level. Some costs are system-level or macro-level events.  This panel of speakers will discuss the connection between the two, and strategies to put downward pressure on costs throughout Oregon health care. 

Ruth Chang, MD: Director of Financial Health, Kaiser Permanente

Will Kennedy, MD: Senior Medical Director for Clinical Services, CareOregon

John Domeika: Head of Alternative Markets, Physicians Insurance

The idea of a single payer model in health care is gaining some traction. However, the term means a number of different things to people, depending on whether one is discussing policy, operations or politics. This session will take up the topic and sort through the noise to get to a meaningful discussion on which models might offer the most compelling interest to Oregon.

Samuel Metz, MD: Director, Oregon Physicians for a National Health Program

DJ Wilson: Host, State of Reform

This session turns the tables on health policy discussions in recent years. Instead of answering questions, John Kitzhaber will be asking them of some of Oregon’s most important players in the health care and health policy worlds. Where is Oregon health care going? Why does policy making appear so difficult? What are the answers to the fiscal challenges? End the day with this thought provoking session with some of Oregon’s most important health care voices.

Imelda Dacones, MD: President and Chief Executive Officer, Northwest Permanente , P.C.

Jeff Heatherington: Chief Executive Officer, FamilyCare Incorporated

Janet Meyer: Cheif Executive Officer, Health Share of Oregon

Greg Van Pelt: Executive Director, Oregon Health Leadership Council

Hon. John Kitzhaber: Former Governor, State of Oregon (moderator)