Media inquiries

Media inquiries

CareOregon works with multiple community partners to help people get health care, housing, employment, education, healthy food and more. Helping just one person or family can make an entire community stronger. It’s something we call the CareOregon Effect.

Please contact us for further information. We welcome your requests for interviews with CareOregon’s experts or our members, for background information or to arrange a guest speaker for your organization. 

Contact:

Erich Ericson
Vice President, Branding, Marketing and Communications
612-226-8741
media@careoregon.org

Our areas of expertise include:

• Oregon Health Plan (Medicaid)
• Medicare
• Medical homes
• Lean process improvement in health care settings
• Human-centered (a.k.a. user-centered) design in health care
• Member councils and member advocacy efforts
• Innovative approaches to member well-being
• Health care policy 

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If you want to share information about CareOregon, please  click here to consult our Brand Style Guide for best practices.

Latest news, press releases and updates

(SEASIDE, Oregon) Nov. 9, 2023 — Today, Columbia Pacific CCO and CareOregon officially broke ground on The Hawk’s Eye Apartments. The health care organizations, alongside local elected officials and community partners celebrated the efforts to convert the Red Lion Inn & Suites into housing for health care workers and Oregon Health Plan members needing permanent supportive housing.

The groundbreaking event included remarks from Seaside Mayor Steve Wright, Clatsop County Commissioner Lianne Thompson, Clatsop County Manager Don Bohn, Providence Hospital Director of Finance/Columbia Pacific Board member Pam Cooper, CareOregon CEO Eric C. Hunter, and Columbia Pacific CCO’s Housing Strategy Advisor Leslie Ford. It was followed by a brief reception for community partners where renderings of the remodeled apartments were on display. 

"Today’s event marks a significant milestone in our multi-year effort to expand housing options on the North Coast," said Eric C. Hunter, CareOregon CEO. "This effort not only helps fill a critical gap by providing housing for individuals with behavioral health concerns but also addresses the pressing need for housing for our healthcare workforce, which has been a major barrier for our provider partners to attract and retain medical staff. We are so grateful for the support from Clatsop County, the City of Seaside, provider partners and neighbors who have come together to bring this project to fruition."

The project will create 55 new housing units, including 38 workforce housing units and 17 permanent supportive housing units. Most units will be studio apartments. All units will be equipped with a private bathroom and kitchenette. Additionally, the complex will include a community room for use by residents and the public.

"The Hawk’s Eye will fill such an important need in Clatsop County, providing much needed housing for members of our community who have struggled to find a place to call home,” said Elissa Gertler, Clatsop County housing manager. “In a county where housing of all kinds is scarce, we need projects like The Hawk’s Eye to not only add more homes, but to also provide much needed services to help people stay housed. This kind of partnership among community agencies is a great model for sharing resources and capacity to accomplish multiple positive outcomes for people's health and housing."

CareOregon purchased the Red Lion Inn & Suites in March 2023 with the intention of converting it into housing. Local coordinated care organization Columbia Pacific CCO will be responsible for managing the site and has contracted with Clatsop Community Action and Clatsop Behavioral Health to provide onsite property management and support services.

For more information about The Hawk’s Eye Apartments, visit: colpachealth.org/for-partners/affordable-housing/converting-the-red-lion-hotel-to-housing.

Left to right: Clatsop County Manager Don Bohn, Pam Cooper, CPCCO Board member, Providence Hospital Director of Finance, Eric C. Hunter CareOregon CEO, Seaside Mayor Steve Wright, Amy Dowd CareOregon Chief Operations Officer, Leslie Ford Columbia Pacific CCO Housing Advisor, and Mimi Haley Columbia Pacific CCO Executive Director

Leslie Ford, Columbia Pacific CCO housing advisor, speaking at The Hawks Eye Groundbreaking

Clatsop County Commissioner Lianne Thompson speaking at The Hawks Eye Groundbreaking