Oregon Health Policy Board Members

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.

To learn more about serving as an OHPB member and to apply please click here.

OHPB Members
Antonio (Tony) Germann, MD, Member, West Linn 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. Term ends: 12/31/2026
John Santa, MD, Member, Portland John Santa retired October 2020 after almost 45 years of clinical and administrative health practice. He has worked in leadership positions for hospitals, physician groups, insurers, research and state government. He most recently worked for OpenNotes, a research initiative at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston Massachusetts. Prior to this work he was Medical Director for the Drug Effectiveness Review Project, one of the country's most robust comparative effectiveness programs, as well as the Director of the Health Ratings Center at Consumer Reports from 2008 to 2014. John practiced primary care internal medicine from 1976 to 1992 and 2003 to 2008. He has taught in multiple venues—introductory courses to clinical medicine, resident courses in public health and preventive medicine and health policy courses. His work has been possible because of the education and training he received at Stanford, Tufts Medical School, Portland Good Samaritan Hospital and Portland State University. Term ends: 12/31/2023
Kirsten Isaacson, Vice-Chair, Portland 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. Term ends: 12/31/2026
Brenda Johnson, MBA, Member, Medford Brenda Johnson serves as the Chief Executive Officer of La Clinica, a community and migrant healthcare organization in Southern Oregon. Brenda holds a MBA from Purdue University, a bachelor’s degree in Nursing from Oregon Health Sciences University, and a bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Southern Oregon University, where her time included study abroad at the Universidad de Guanajuato, GTO, Mexico. Brenda has dedicated more than 25 years of her career to non-profit leadership in health care and community development and has a drive toward creating equitable systems of care. She believes shared power and love creates belonging, honors dignity, and positively transforms the lives of all people. Term ends: 12/31/2025
Oscar Arana, MBA, Chair, Portland Oscar Arana is a private and nonprofit consultant specializing in communications, grant writing, program and business development, and event planning. Oscar has 10+ years of experience working in Portland's premier, culturally-specific nonprofit organizations overseeing educational programs, as well as raising restricted and unrestricted funds. Oscar was the director of strategic development and communications for Portland's Native American Youth and Family Center, and the President of the Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber. Prior to joining the nonprofit sector, Oscar was a television news producer in Central Washington and a print reporter in Mexico City. Oscar is a graduate of the University of Oregon's Journalism School and the Executive MBA program and is a member of the UO Alumni Association Board. Term ends: 12/31/2025
Melina Moran, DNP, FNP-C, Member, Bend Dr. Moran is a board-certified family nurse practitioner. She graduated from Frontier Nursing University in 2018 with a Master of Science in Nursing and in 2023 with her Doctorate of Nursing Practice. She completed her Master of Science degree from Frontier Nursing University and her Bachelor of Science from Portland State University. Dr. Moran has been in the medical field for over 20 years working as an emergency room and critical care flight nurse, family medicine/primary care provider and has been a member of federal and local disaster teams working over-seas in Haiti and the United Kingdom. She currently is a provider in addiction medicine providing harm reduction strategies to reduce overdoses, provide medication assisted therapy and improve the health of people with substance use disorder. In addition to her extensive work experience, Dr. Moran is a member of The National Nurse Led Care Consortium partnering with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention working on the Vaccine Confidence Advisory Committee to increase Covid-19 vaccine confidence. Dr. Moran was governor appointed to serve on the Oregon Commission of Hispanic Affairs and currently serves as Chair. As a member of the Latino/a/x community, Dr. Moran is passionate about being a change agent in her local, state and national communities. Health equity is Dr. Moran’s passion and vows to work toward decreasing disparities and improving health outcomes. Term ends: 12/31/2024
Rosemarie Hemmings, Ph.D., Member, Beaverton 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. Term ends: 12/31/2024
William (Bill) Kramer, MBA, Member, Portland Bill Kramer is Executive Director for Health Policy at the Pacific Business Group on Health. In this role, he leads PBGH’s initiatives to advance public policy in ways that improve health care quality 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 Board of Directors for the Primary Care Collaborative and is a member of the Founders Council for the United States of Care. In the past, he has served as Project Director for the Consumer-Purchaser Alliance and as a Board member for the National Quality Forum and the Health Care Transformation Task Force. He has testified before Congress on physician payment reform. Bill is 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’s operations 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. Term ends: 12/31/2024
Sandra (Sandy) Sampson, Member, Pendleton Sandra Sampson was elected in December 2019 as the representative Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR). She serves as Treasurer on the CTUIR’s governing body, the Board of Trustees. She is responsible for assuring the effective management over the financial resources of the tribe. Sandra is experienced in working with Tribes, State, and Federal government in the health services field, including managed care contracting. She has the ability to facilitate, negotiate, and build consensus among diverse constituents and stakeholders with competing needs. Through the course of her career, she has worked in a several capacities relating to grants and program management. She has served as a Tribal representative on the Oregon Health Authority, delegate to the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, as Chair of the CTUIR Health Commission, and on numerous boards including CTUIR Economic and Community Development Committee, CTUIR Tribal Employment Rights Office Commission, and Umatilla Reservation Housing Authority Commission. Sandra continues working in Medicaid, tribal health and tribal government in focusing on policy research and development of technical assistance, training, and communications. Term ends: 12/31/2025