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How to File a Complaint

Do you have a concern about a Health Licensing Office licensee or authorization holder?
Download a complaint form or obtain one in person at our office in Salem. You will need to specify whom the complaint is against, the address and phone number(s) of the people involved, the details of the complaint, and the type of complaint, such as:

  • Practicing or advertising without a license
  • Violating practice standards
  • Competency of services

Submit the complaint in person or via mail to: Health License Office, 1430 Tandem Ave. NE, Suite 180, Salem, OR 97301, fax: (503) 370-9216, or email: hlo.info@odhsoha.oregon.gov.

If you are using any Apple product to complete this form (Mac, iPad, iPhone), please download and use Adobe Reader before completing the form.

The complaint process

After you submit your complaint form, HLO Regulatory Operations Division staff will review it to determine whether the practitioner has violated any Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) or Oregon Administrative Rules (OAR), or if the complaint needs to be forwarded to the correct overseeing agency. If a violation is suspected under one of the boards, councils or programs the HLO oversees, the HLO staff will conduct an investigation.

Investigations may include, but may not be limited to, obtaining documents, and interviewing those involved, including witnesses. Upon the conclusion of the investigation the volunteer citizen board representing the profession may review the specifics of the case.

Disciplinary action begins with a notice from the office, which states the alleged violation(s) and penalties. This information becomes a public record.

Until a final order is issued, HLO staff will not disclose specific information related to any investigation. If information related to a complaint is requested, it must be made through a public records request. The process to submit a public records request can be found on the HLO public records request webpage.

Disciplinary actions may include civil penalties, which may include, but aren't limited to, fines up to a maximum of $5,000, and suspension or revocation of a practitioner's authorization (license, certification or registration) to provide services. HLO may also require additional education to assist the license holder with compliance issues, or any combination of the sanctions listed.

We ask you to be patient during the complaint investigation and resolution. Due to the HLO complaint caseload, the thoroughness with which we conduct our investigations and the statutory, or legal, steps we must take, resolution of your complaint may take as long as several months or longer. However, we make every effort to resolve complaints as quickly as possible.

If a complaint is filed against you

If a complaint is filed against an HLO licensee, you can learn more about the process.