John Kitzhaber was born in Colfax, Washington on March 5, 1947. He graduated from South Eugene High School in Eugene, Oregon in 1965. He attended Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, graduating in 1969 with a bachelor's degree in biology. In 1973 he graduated from the University of Oregon Medical School in Portland, Oregon and served his internship at General Rose Memorial Hospital in Denver, Colorado. Following his internship, he settled in Roseburg, Oregon where he practiced emergency medicine for over 15 years.
In 1978 Dr. Kitzhaber was elected to the Oregon State House of Representatives. In 1980 he was elected to the first of three terms in the State Senate and served as Senate President from 1985 to 1993. His legislative career was marked by active leadership in the areas of public education, community development, environmental stewardship and a wide variety of health care issues including: long-term care, resource allocation and uncompensated care. While Senate President he authored and implemented the groundbreaking Oregon Health Plan. In 1994 he was elected Governor of the State of Oregon and was reelected to a second term in 1998.
In January 2003 Dr. Kitzhaber began serving as President of the Estes Park Institute, which conducts six annual educational conferences for community hospitals. Dr. Kitzhaber serves as the Director for the Center for Evidence Based Policy at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland. He holds an endowed Chair on Health Care Policy with The Foundation for Medical Excellence, an Oregon based public, nonprofit educational foundation.
On January 13, 2006 Dr. Kitzhaber launched The Archimedes Movement – committed to building a meaningful opportunity for engagement through which the growing concern over our health care system can be channeled into effective action The goal is to create not only the vision for a more equitable and sustainable system but also the tension necessary for its realization.
Dr. Kitzhaber is an avid fly fisherman and white water rafter. He has one son, Logan, and resides in Portland, Oregon.
