FW: Thank you for joining OHA in Portland - Your input is valuable

[Guest guest]

Here is the feedback letter for people who attended the OHA townhall meeting.

Keep a few letters like this by your bed and you’ll never need Ambien.

--

E. Abrahamson, D.C.

Chiropractic physician

Lake Oswego Chiropractic Clinic

315 Second Street

Lake Oswego, OR 97034

503-635-6246

Website: http://www.lakeoswegochiro.com

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From: OHA DirectorsOffice <OHA.DirectorsOffice2@...>

Date: Thu, 3 Nov 2011 16:09:39 +0000

OHA DirectorsOffice <OHA.DirectorsOffice2@...>

Subject: Thank you for joining OHA in Portland - Your input is valuable

Dear community member:

I want to personally thank you for joining the Oregon Health Authority and other members of the Portland community to discuss proposed changes to the Oregon Health Plan and the creation of Coordinated Care Organizations. Your contributions and feedback are extremely important in shaping how we deliver health care in Oregon.

Along with Mike Bonetto and Kolmer from Governor Kitzhaber’s office, I traveled to communities across the state. We met with and heard from about 1,000 people. People like you who are concerned about, yet ready to address, our current health care system challenges.

In several communities we were joined by a local innovator, someone who is already working on delivering health care in a new, better and local way. It was exciting to learn how local groups are already breaking down system barriers and putting the patient’s health at the center of care.

Although each community has unique needs, some common insights were shared across the meetings. From these discussions we've taken away several key points.

Oregonians want a new way to access health care that focuses on a patient's entire well-being, not on protecting the current system.

Prevention, coordinated care, chronic disease management, local control for a global budget, and measurable outcomes are all elements of House Bill 3650 that people told us were frankly long overdue.

Communities are ready for a change to get costs under control. It's clear that Oregonians know the current system brings great risk. We have to act now to stem the out-of-control inflation that comes from an inefficient health system and protect our state's public and private resources.

We need to allow local communities flexibility, as no two areas of the state are exactly alike; and we must focus on removing bureaucratic barriers that inhibit a community’s ability to innovate and move quickly to create positive change.

These ideas, along with your comments and suggestions, will be provided to the Oregon Health Policy Board as it develops the final business plan for Coordinated Care Organizations. The plan will be sent to the Legislature by the end of the year for approval.

When we're finished, we can truly say this is Oregon's plan – Oregon's way to better health. Thank you again for your thoughtful participation.

Bruce Goldberg, M.D.

Director, Oregon Health Authority

P.S. To keep you up to date on the work of transforming Oregon's health care system for better health, better care and lower costs, we have added you to the Oregon Health Policy Board email list. You can also get the most current information at health.oregon.gov <../Local%20Settings/Temp/XPgrpwise/health.oregon.gov> .

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