The nine-member Oregon Health Policy Board (OHPB) serves as the policy-making and oversight body for the Oregon Health Authority. The Board is committed to providing access to quality, affordable health care for all Oregonians and to improving population health.
OHPB was established through House Bill 2009, signed by the Governor in June 2009. Board members are nominated by the Governor and must be confirmed by the Senate. Board members serve a four-year term of office. The Board is responsible for implementing the health care reform provisions of HB 2009.
Learn more about serving as an OHPB member and how to apply
Board Members
- City
- Portland
- Term End
- 12/31/2026
- Bio
Kirsten Isaacson is the Research Coordinator for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 49 where she applies her over fifteen years of experience in government and nonprofits focused on industry-specific research and policy analysis. SEIU is one of the nation’s largest unions. In Oregon, SEIU Local 49 represents more than 13,000 healthcare and property service workers. Kirsten has worked for the last five years as a healthcare policy researcher and advocate, promoting a health care system that responsibly and equitably serves all communities.
Kirsten and her family live in Portland and she is a parent of two children who attend Portland Public Schools.
- City
- West Linn
- Term End
- 12/31/2027
- Bio
Dr. Antonio (Tony) Germann is a family physician centered in rural primary healthcare, clinical health education, public health, and with a focus in the health policy to bring better health outcomes for the most vulnerable communities of Oregon. Currently he is medical director of Salud and Pacific pediatrics clinics of the Yakima Valley Farm Workers clinic system (FQHC). He is the founder of the Salud Rural Maternal Child Health Fellowship. The fellowship prepares interested family physicians for practice in a rural or underserved setting through advanced training in low and high-risk obstetrics, surgical obstetrical skills, management of neonatal complications including resuscitation, and advanced office gynecologic procedures. Dr. Germann enjoys advancing the development of primary care clinicians and has served as a clinical assistant professor and affiliate faculty at OHSU in the School of Medicine and Department of Family Medicine.
Dr. Germann’s interest in public health and health policy has led him to serve in numerous roles in the state of Oregon. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Germann served on Governor Kate Brown COVID-19 Medical Advisory Panel composed of 16 members with weekly meetings for direct counsel to Gov. Brown in support of the state’s COVID-19 response. Additionally during the Delta wave of the summer of 2021 he served as a member of the Crisis Prevention & Response Table to Governor Kate Brown. The response team worked with the incident command center for state and regional hospitals response. With the anticipated closure of the pandemic designation, Dr. Germann served on the Oregon State Task Force- Bridge Health Care Program which addressed the Medicaid Redetermination as a voting member. The task force successfully designed a bridge program and basic health plan to provide affordable health insurance coverage and improve the continuity of coverage for individuals who regularly enroll and disenroll in the medical assistance program or other health care coverage due to frequent fluctuations in income.
Dr. Germann intends on changing policies and healthcare to a system that is equitable for all, including those that are the most marginalized of our society.
- City
- Portland
- Term End
- 12/31/2028
- Bio
Hayden Rooke-Ley, JD, is an Assistant Professor at the Brown University School of Public Health, where his research focuses on corporate consolidation in health care, Medicare and Medicaid financing, and labor and workforce issues in the health sector. He has published in leading medical and law review journals, and he advises state and federal policymakers, enforcement agencies, and other health care stakeholders. He is also a practicing health care attorney, and a senior fellow at the American Economic Liberties project. He earned his J.D. from Stanford Law School and clerked in U.S. federal district court.
- City
- Pendleton
- Term End
- 12/31/2029
- Bio
Aaron Hines is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR). He has worked for the CTUIR in various capacities for the past 20 years. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer at the Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center, which is owned and operated by the CTUIR. Hines graduated from the Oregon Health and Science University with the Healthcare MBA.
For six years, Aaron served on the Board of Trustees, the governing body of the CTUIR. He was first elected to the Board of Trustees in 2009 as the General Council Chairman. At the age of 23, he was the youngest person to ever be elected to the General Council Chair position. Aaron also served as the Treasurer for the CTUIR.
Hines currently serves as the Chair of the Northwest Portland Area Indian Board and is a delegate to the National Indian Health Board. He has also held other leadership positions including First Vice President of the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI) and alternate area Vice President for the Northwest region of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI). ATNI is an organization composed of more than 50 tribes in the Pacific Northwest. ATNI deals with promoting and protecting tribal sovereignty and as First Vice President Hines is heavily involved in the special relationship between State and Federal lawmakers and their connections to the all of the member tribes of ATNI. While serving on the Board of Trustees, Aaron was appointed to the Oregon Legislative Commission on Indian Services as the CTUIR's representative.
- City
- Tigard
- Term End
- 12/31/2027
- Bio
Peter Starkey is the Executive Director of FolkTime, a peer-run nonprofit providing behavioral health support to individuals and organizations throughout Oregon. With over a decade of diverse nonprofit experience, Peter has managed small, community-based organizations to large, multinational organizations prior to joining FolkTime. He is deeply committed to advancing behavioral health and equity for Oregon's most vulnerable populations, especially those with disabilities or who have been historically marginalized. Peter is passionate about building more trauma-competent systems, moving beyond trauma-informed care to collaborate with hospitals, clinics, schools, governments, and other community-based organizations in creating accessible healthcare and supportive systems capable of navigating trauma.
Peter has presented talks and trainings globally on topics related to behavioral health, trauma competency, houselessness, advocacy, and global health policy. His work in peer-delivered services, shaped by his lived and living experience with the behavioral health system, has influenced his view of health policy, emphasizing the importance of treating people with respect, dignity, and care.
- City
- Eugene
- Term End
- 12/31/2028
- Bio
Eve Gray began her career in 2011 as a Healthcare Improvement RN at PeaceHealth, focusing on enhancing healthcare processes and patient safety. She progressed to roles including Patient Safety Coordinator and Nurse Manager in Labor & Delivery and Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) departments. In 2018, she joined Oregon Medical Group as a Clinic Manager and later advanced to Director, overseeing integration of primary and specialty care and implementing population health initiatives, with focus areas in orthopedics, pain management, and diabetes. Since 2022, she has served as Director of Health and Human Services at Lane County Government, leading transformative initiatives and managing multiple service lines and clinics.
Eve Gray holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) from Linfield College and a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) from Walden University. She is a Registered Nurse certified by the Oregon State Board of Nursing and a Certified Medical Practice Executive (CMPE). Additional certifications include Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ), Certified in Just Culture, Lean Green Belt, and Teamstepps Master Trainer.
- City
- Beaverton
- Term End
- 12/31/2028
- Bio
Dr. Rosemarie Hemmings has a Masters in Social Work and a Ph.D. in Public Health. With over 30 years of experience as a licensed clinical social worker, Dr. Hemmings currently owns a group mental health practice that focuses on providing cultural and linguistic care to Oregonians seeking mental health treatment. Additionally, she is an Assistant Professor in Public Health Dentistry and Director of Social Work at Oregon Health Science University School of Dentistry. She has developed and teaches an innovative inter-professional curriculum related to social determinants of health, health equity, and social justice within the school of dentistry. Additionally, Dr. Hemmings directs the social work program, which includes masters of social work interns from Portland State University, Arizona State University, Simmons University and Widener University who provide social work interventions to patients within the dental clinic, and residency program. Furthermore, Dr. Hemmings has presented her research nationally and internationally in the areas of social determinants of health, health equity, and social work curriculum within dental education.
Dr. Hemmings also provides clinical supervision for social workers seeking licensure. Furthermore, she serves as a mentor to several social work students and social workers who identify as Black, Indigenous and other people of color including LGBTQIA intersectionality and consults with various organizations on Diversity Equity and Inclusion related matters. Dr. Hemmings is currently working with Oregon State Representatives and OHA to improve access to mental health providers who are Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color.
- City
- Portland
- Term End
- 12/31/2028
- Bio
Bill Kramer is the former Executive Director for Health Policy at the Purchaser Business Group on Health (PBGH). In this role, he supported PBGH’s initiatives to advance public policy in ways that improve health care quality, equity, and affordability. He is a nationally recognized expert in health policy, finance, and economics, with strong connections to the business community, health care industry leaders, policy experts and political leaders. Bill serves on the Congressional Budget Office’s Panel of Health Advisers and the Oregon Health Policy Board. In the past, he has served as Project Director for the Consumer-Purchaser Alliance and as a Board member for the National Quality Forum, the Primary Care Collaborative, and the Health Care Transformation Task Force. He has testified before Congress on physician payment reform. Bill has been a guest lecturer on health policy at Stanford Law School and the UC Berkeley School of Public Health, and he has made presentations in many health policy forums and has been quoted frequently in the media on health policy issues.
Immediately prior to taking his position at PBGH, Bill led his own consulting practice focusing on health policy, finance, and business strategy for public and private sector clients. Prior to developing his consulting practice, Bill was a senior executive with Kaiser Permanente for over 20 years-– most recently as Chief Financial Officer for Kaiser Permanente’s Northwest Region. Bill also served as general manager for Kaiser Permanente in Connecticut; earlier in his career, he managed marketing, human resources, and medical economics functions.
Bill has an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and an AB from Harvard.
- City
- Eugene
- Term End
- 12/31/2029
- Bio
Bess Jayme (she/her) brings more than 15 years of leadership across Oregon's healthcare, early education, and nonprofit sectors. As Director of the Essential Worker Healthcare Trust at RISE Partnership, Bess oversees a labor-management healthcare fund providing comprehensive medical benefits to approximately 7,000 long-term care workers and their families across Oregon.
Prior to joining RISE Partnership, Bess worked at PacificSource Community Solutions, a Coordinated Care Organization, where she served as Social Determinants of Health and Equity Program Manager, supporting people on Medicaid with language access, housing instability, food insecurity, climate supports, and other conditions that shape health outside the clinical setting. And before that, she directed early childhood initiatives at United Way of Lane County and the Lane County Early Learning Hub, a cross-sector regional system serving Lane County's youngest children and families.
Bess was born and raised in Michigan, where she completed her undergraduate degree at Michigan State University. She moved to Oregon in 1998, raised her two kids, and earned her MBA from Marylhurst University along the way. In addition to her work with OHPB, Bess serves as Treasurer for the Oregon Doula Association. She currently lives in Eugene with her husband and two rambunctious chihuahuas.