In September, the Oregon Health Fund Board (OHFB) will hold a series of public meetings across the state to share details and gain feedback on its draft plan for reforming health care and building a healthy Oregon. For more information contact 503.373.1538.

The draft will be available in early September. OHFB staff will be presenting it across the state and want your feedback before finalizing their report in October; your comments will be summarized and forwarded with the Final Report to the Governor and Legislature.

This will be a Town Hall style forum designed to encourage both feedback and dialog.

Audience members are asked to focus comments on concepts being presented; limit comments to no longer than 2 minutes per speaker to allow as many people as possible to speak. Comment cards will be distributed. Attendees may leave written testimony at the end of the evening.

Inaugural Membership Conference
Saturday, June 14, 2008

» Register & Pay Now

John Kitzhaber invites you to join him at our 1st Annual Membership Conference. You can see Gov. Kitzhaber's invitation in his blog.

Agenda
9:30 am - Pre-conference workshops (optional, but pre-registration is required)
12:00 pm - Registration and lunch, and bumper sticker contest
1:30 - Plenary Session and Member Convention with John Kitzhaber and the Interim Steering Committee (see grassroots structure document here)
2:45 - Concurrent workshops
4:30 - Looking Forward: Our Next Steps, John Kitzhaber
5:30 - 7:00 pm - Members-only Reception with John Kitzhaber: Appetizers, no-host bar and live music by the Bobby Torres Ensemble - Fun!

» Workshop details (tentative)

Location

Accommodations
Lewis and Clark is making dorm rooms available for those who wish to spend the night Friday and/or Saturday evenings. The lodging must be pre-arranged and costs between $22-$27 per person.

Cost
$30 - Conference sessions, materials and lunch
$35 - The above, plus the Members-only Reception and 1-year membership

A limited number of scholarships are available. You may also inquire about a travel stipend.

For more information or to reserve a room or to arrange to pay onsite, please contact Matt Webber at 503-860-5854 or matt@wecandobetter.org.

To register and pay for the Conference, please use our secure online process. To reserve a place now, but register and pay on-site, or to request a scholarship. Please contact Matt.

Health care is on everyone's mind. Health insurance costs, quality of care, access in our communities - there are many concerns which affect us all. While the health care system is broken, there’s currently a process in place to fix it.

Oregon leaders are developing a proposal for quality, affordable health care for Oregonians. But what does that mean for you?

Join us at a community near you for an important discussion on health care in Oregon. These events are free and open to the public. Your input will help shape the future of health care in our state. Everyone’s voice matters:

• people with or without health care
• employers
• seniors
• people with disabilities

You can also get involved in the conversation online at a new website on health reform in Oregon. Share your views at www.talkhealthreform.org.

Brought to you on behalf of the Oregon Health Fund Board by:

Our second Leadership Training will be held the first Saturday in April. Please RSVP using the sign-up link below (preferred, though you must be logged-in to use the sign-up feature) or by sending an email to matt@wecandobetter.org.

This training will focus on three things:

• our new structure and grassroots decision-making
• presenting our message to groups large and small (AKA the speaker's training)
• the upcoming membership meeting

We will also hope to introduce our new staff members.

Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel will be in Portland, OR, on January 30 for appearances before academic, business, civic and health providers to discuss the need for comprehensive healthcare system reform and the role of HealthCare Vouchers in truly fixing what ails the system.

Dr. Emanuel can be heard at either of two public appearances. The first event will be hosted by the Oregon Health Forum and will begin at 11:30 at the Governor Hotel. For more information consult their Website, http://www.healthforum.org/events/Emanuelluncheon.html.
The second event will be sponsored by the Portland City Club and will take place at the City Club Commons starting at 6:00. For more information consult their Website, http://www.pdxcityclub.org/. Both events are open to the public.

HealthCare Vouchers is the brainchild of two prominent healthcare professionals. Dr. Emanuel is the Chair of the Department of Bioethics at the Clinical Center at the National Institutes of Health; he is also a breast oncologist. Victor Fuchs is the Henry J. Kaiser, Jr., Professor ofEconomics and of Health Research and Policy, emeritus, Stanford University.