OAHU Annual Convention Get to Know the Speakers

Thursday, July 13th | 1:30 PM | Oregon & Washington State Legislative Overview

Tom Holt, OAHU Lobbyist with The Holt Company
Tom Holt is a veteran lobbyist specializing in health care and business issues. He’s worked at Oregon’s Capitol in a variety of capacities since the late 1990s (including several years at Regence/Cambia) and is known for his bipartisan, problem-solving approach to complex issues. He represents a wide variety of clients, including OAHU.

Chris Bandoli, Partner with Bandli Consulting LLC
Chris brings 15 years of experience in lobbying, advocacy, policy analysis and political strategy in Washington state. He has an intimate knowledge of the legislative process, a track record of successful engagement in the political process, and a wealth of professional relationships with legislators, legislative and agency staff, and the wider lobbying community.

Chris currently serves a variety of clients as an independent lobbyist and consultant, and previously led government affairs teams at multiple prominent organizations including the Washington State Hospital Association and Regence BlueShield, and served as the Executive Director of the Association of Washington Healthcare Plans.

Chris earned a Bachelor’s degree in history and political science from Indiana University and a Master’s degree in political management from The George Washington University. 

Thursday, July 13th | 2:30 PM | The Interaction of COBRA with Medicare 

Corine Helton, Account Executive with PacificSource Administrators
Corine has over 20 years’ experience in the medical insurance field and has worked at two Pacific Northwest insurance carriers over her carrier.  She has been with PacificSource Health Plans since 2004, and working on the Administrators side since 2006 as an Account Executive for Washington State.   Her background has given her extensive experience in Third Party Administration services, focusing mainly on the FSA, HRA, Section 132, and COBRA Administration.  She is responsible for maintaining client satisfaction, troubleshooting client issues, and explaining the rules related to the complex regulations on these plans.  She enjoys explaining in simple laymen’s terms how these rules work and how to benefit the clients she works with.  She also creates and conducts Continuing Education courses in Washington State.

Eric Schmidt, Account Manager with PacificSource Administrators
Eric began his career in the medical insurance field with PacificSource Health Plans in 2015 a sales support role. With a strong background in administrative support, he moved to an account manger role with PacificSource Administrators in 2020. His current focus is Third Party Administration account management specializing in FSA, HRA and COBRA plans.

Thursday, July 13th | 3:45 PM | Oregon Cost Growth Target

Jeremy Vandehey, Oregon Market President with PacificSource Health Plans
Based in the Bend office, Jeremy Vandehey is responsible for health plan activities in the state of Oregon and serves as statewide executive leader for market strategy, business development, provider partnerships, community engagement and government/regulatory affairs. 

Prior to joining PacificSource, Jeremy served as an executive leader with the Oregon Health Authority (OHA), where he was responsible for leading the state’s health reform efforts across Medicaid, the Oregon Health Insurance Marketplace and public employee health plans. Prior to that role, Jeremy served as health care policy advisor for Governor Kate Brown and as the government relations manager for Kaiser Permanente Northwest Region. 

Jeremy received his juris doctor degree with distinction for the University North Dakota School of Law and a bachelor of science degree in public policy and administration from Western Oregon University. When not in the office, he enjoys hiking, skiing and biking outdoors. 

Friday, July 14th | 8:10 AM | Communication Strategies to Maximize Health and Safety Performance Across a Growing Hispanic Workforce

Santiago Landazuri, Vice President with USI Insurance Services
Santiago brings over 14 years of industry experience with considerable experience in Workers’ Compensation and Employee Benefits. He has served employers, carriers, and brokers. His professional expertise, along with his bilingual and bicultural background, have uniquely positioned him to be a key risk-management partner for employers needing to strengthen their practices and effectively manage their growing & diversifying workforce. 

He has served on the employer’s side in both workers’ safety and recruiting, as well as on the carrier side, as both a Claims Adjuster and a Return-To-Work Consultant. As a broker, Santiago works with commercial businesses, across a variety of industries, to improve and optimize their Benefits and Safety programs.

Friday, July 14th | 9:10 AM | A Dose of Hope

Dr. Robin Henderson, PsyD, Chief Executive Behavioral Health with Providence Health & Services Oregon
Dr. Henderson is the Chief Executive of Behavioral Health for Providence Oregon, overseeing a vast continuum of services from acute inpatient care to fully integrated primary care and everything in between. She also serves at the Chief Clinical Officer for Work2BeWell, a youth driven mental health education and prevention program that brings free mental health curriculum to schools, youth groups and social media in an effort to reduce stigma and improve mental health and wellness for youth across the country. Dr. Henderson has worked in a wide variety of state and local efforts to improve the community system of care, focusing primarily on bringing mental health and substance use services closer to where people work, live and play. She lives in West Linn with her family, and works to be well by cooking for her family and friends.

Friday, July 14th | 10:30 AM | Mental Health: Is the 21st Century Here Yet?

Dan Thoma, LPC, Director of Behavioral Health with Moda Health
Dan Thoma is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Director of Behavioral Health for Moda Health. He has led Moda’s behavioral health program for the past fifteen years, where he has driven innovative benefit and program enhancements. He previously worked as a crisis and outpatient therapist and program manager in community mental health. He has contributed to numerous collaborative efforts to improve Oregon’s system of behavioral healthcare and currently serves on Oregon’s System of Care Advisory Council.

Friday, July 14th | 11:30 AM | Oregon’s Economy Through a Labor Market Perspective

Nicole Ramos, Regional Economist with Oregon Employment Department, Research Division
Nicole S. Ramos is the Oregon Employment Department’s new Regional Economist for Central and South Central Oregon. In this role, she focuses on data analysis, research, and writing about labor market issues affecting workers and employers in the area. She works closely with community partners in an effort to support economic development. Prior to this, she was the Workforce Analyst for the Mid-Valley region.