Greater Oregon Behavioral Health, Inc. is a rural/frontier behavioral health and social services network, empowering individuals and communities to achieve better health.
We envision strong, healthy communities where all individuals are supported in achieving health, wellness, and their full potential.
Our Mission
Letter from the CEO
Ann Ford
As I reflect on 2025, one thing is clear: the behavioral health and broader healthcare systems are operating in a period of sustained pressure and transformation. Shifting federal and state priorities, looming Medicaid reductions, workforce shortages, and rising demand are no longer emerging challenges, they define the environment.
At Greater Oregon Behavioral Health, Inc. (GOBHI), we met this year with discipline and focus. We aligned resources, strengthened partnerships, and made targeted decisions to position Eastern Oregon for long-term stability. Central to that work and the strength and foundation of the organization are our employees.
I have the privilege of working alongside individuals who bring expertise, integrity, and a deep commitment to the communities we serve. In a year that required clarity and difficult choices, our team remained focused, transparent, steady, and mission-driven. That consistency and deep system expertise is what enables us to lead with confidence.
I believe leadership is grounded in service and working alongside our teams, not above them. Our progress reflects a shared commitment to accountability, collaboration, and delivering meaningful results for the people who depend on us.
We are also clear in our values. Access and equity are operational priorities. In a region shaped by geography and workforce constraints, we are responsible for ensuring that care is not determined by circumstance, presentation or location. That commitment continues to guide our decisions and investments.
The challenges ahead are real. In 2026 and beyond, healthcare organizations will face tighter margins, increased expectations for outcomes and cost management, and ongoing workforce constraints, and will be more pronounced in rural and frontier communities. At the same time, system complexity continues to place strain on providers and limit efficiency.
We are not immune to these pressures. But we are prepared to lead through them.
Our path forward is disciplined and deliberate. We will maintain strong financial stewardship to ensure sustainability. We will prioritize the behavioral health workforce through targeted, high-impact strategies. We will continue to align and simplify the system to improve access and effectiveness. We will lead in policy and advocacy to ensure rural communities remain central in decision making. And we will keep equity and access at the core of every action we take.
This report reflects an organization that understands the challenges ahead and is prepared to act with clarity and purpose. We do not underestimate what lies ahead but we are confident in our people, our partnerships, and our direction.
GOBHI will continue to lead through uncertainty, grounded in our mission and strengthened by the team behind this work.
Thank you for your continued commitment and partnership. It is a privilege to serve alongside you.
Sincerely,
Ann Ford
Chief Executive Officer
About GOBHI
Founded in 1994, GOBHI is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that is charged with administering the behavioral health Medicaid benefit, non-emergent medical transportation, and community engagement in 12 rural and frontier counties in Oregon. GOBHI is a co-owner of the Eastern Oregon Coordinated Care Organization (EOCCO) which provides healthcare coverage to Oregon Health Plan (OHP) members across 12 rural and frontier counties. Encompassing 50% of the state’s landmass but only 5% of its population.
Beyond Medicaid administration, GOBHI serves diverse populations—including children, families, and older adults—through collaborative partnerships in education, child welfare, criminal justice, and senior services. We acknowledge the federally recognized tribes within our service area, including the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and the Burns Paiute Tribe, and respect tribal sovereignty and self determination.
GOBHI is governed by a board of directors consisting of county commissioners, public health directors, medical providers, individuals with experience and community behavioral health leaders. The CEO reports directly to the board, ensuring strong leadership and alignment with our mission.
GOBHI partners with these Community Mental Health Programs (CMHPs) to provide behavioral health services to members:
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Center for Human Development, Inc.
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Community Counseling Solutions
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Outback Strong
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Lifeways, Inc.
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Mid-Columbia Center for Living
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New Directions Northwest
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Symmetry Care
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Wallowa Valley Center for Wellness
*EOCCO’s ownership group includes ODS Community Health (Moda Health), GOBHI, Good Shepherd Hospital, Grande Ronde Hospital, Saint Alphonsus Hospital, Saint Anthony Hospital, Eastern Oregon Independent Physicians Association, and Yakima Valley Farm Workers
Members and Communities
Member Demographics
In 2025, GOBHI managed the care of 91,713 Oregon Health Plan members.
Age
EOCCO Membership Over Time
The 3.5% decrease in membership between 2024 and 2025 stems primarily from the “unwinding” of the federal Public Health Emergency (PHE).
During the pandemic, a “continuous enrollment” rule prevented states from disenrolling members, regardless of changes in income or eligibility. To address this, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) launched a redetermination process to review all 1.5 million members for the first time since 2020. Though reviews began in April 2023, Oregon received federal approval to extend its timeline over 14 months to ensure a smoother transition for residents.
To minimize coverage gaps, the state initially offered a 90-day response window for renewal requests. However, by late 2024 and early 2025, these windows returned to the standard 30-to-60-day timelines. This shift, combined with the final wave of benefit closures in February 2025, accelerated disenrollment for both ineligible members and those who did not respond to renewal notices. The state of Oregon was among the largest in the nation in retaining high enrollment numbers through this process.
Commitment to Health Equity
Our mission is to build a health system that ensures every individual has the opportunity to achieve their full health potential and well-being. We are committed to removing barriers to care that hinder access and outcomes, with a focus on providing high-quality services that meet the diverse needs of all communities.
GOBHI recognizes the unique challenges faced by residents of Eastern Oregon in accessing care and achieving positive health outcomes. By listening to and understanding the experiences of those we serve, we are able to deliver care that is responsive to the specific needs of each community.
Programs Serving Tribal Nations
GOBHI actively collaborates with the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) and the Burns Paiute Tribe. Building and maintaining strong relationships with tribal nations is vital to enhancing behavioral health services in Eastern Oregon and is a core component of GOBHI’s mission, vision, and values.
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GOBHI’s Behavioral Health Workforce Campaign invites tribal representation on its steering committee, video materials, and job listings.
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GOBHI works with CTUIR as a contracted provider for NEMT and provides technical support.
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GOBHI seeks representation at our Local Community Health Partnerships (LCHPs) and Community Advisory Council (CAC).
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Currently, we have a Tribal Member as a part of the EOCCO CAC leadership.
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GOBHI collaborates in a Tribal Subcommittee where we listen to needs, discuss how we can support, and provide any requested educational information.
Programs Serving Latino/a Members
GOBHI works closely with our network of providers across Eastern Oregon to ensure that Spanish-speaking members have access to both Spanish-speaking providers and language services.
Through EOCCO’s Health Equity Plan, GOBHI is committed to better supporting the well-being of our Latino/a members. The plan’s goals include:
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Increasing cultural responsiveness training and education for providers, clinic staff, and the EOCCO workforce.
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Recruiting and supporting a diverse workforce that reflects the makeup of EOCCO membership.
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Improving access to language services for EOCCO members.
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Enhancing member engagement to address health and accessibility needs.
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Gaining a deeper understanding of population gaps and trends in care access.
Social Determinants of Health
Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) are conditions in the environments in which people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning, and quality-of-life outcomes and risks. By supporting patient and population well-being, investments addressing SDOH can improve patient outcomes, help manage healthcare costs, and support health equity.
Below, we compare data for the general population of EOCCO counties to Oregon as a whole.
Economic Stability
Metric | EOCCO Counties | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
% Unemployed (Department of Employment - 2025)⁴ | 5.5% | 5.2% |
Total labor force population (Department of Employment - 2025)⁴ | 92,258 | 2,214,726 |
% Households spending at least 30% of income on housing (ACS5Y_S2503_2024)¹ | 26.4% | 34.1% |
% Population below federal poverty level (ACS5Y_S1701_2024)¹ | 13.8% | 11.9% |
Median household income* (ACS5Y_S2503_2024)¹
| $62,142 | $83,011 |
*A value for median income of the combined EOCCO counties was not available. The average median income of the 12 EOCCO counties is utilized for approximation of median income of these counties.
Neighborhood and Physical Environment
Metric | EOCCO Counties | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
% Households with broadband internet subscription (ACS5Y_S2801_2024)¹ | 73.5% | 92.4% |
# Reported crimes per 100,000 people based on distinct cases** (year: 2025)⁶ | 5,657 | 6,545 |
Point in time homeless rates per 1,000 (year: 2024)⁵ | 3.8 | 6.4 |
Owner occupied housing units (ACS5Y_S2503_2024)¹ | 68.1% | 63.3% |
Renter occupied housing units (ACS5Y_S2503_2024)¹ | 31.9% | 36.7% |
Average commute time (minutes) (ACS5Y_S0801_2024)¹ | 18.2 | 23.0 |
**A distinct case (incident) is a single event or report, while a distinct offense is each individual criminal act within that event. Under NIBRS, one case can contain multiple offenses (e.g., a robbery leading to assault), providing a more granular, accurate picture than old summary systems that only recorded the most serious offense.
Education
Metric | EOCCO Counties | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
Oregon student dropout/pushout rate per 1,000 students enrolled (Dept of Education (2024-2025))⁸ | 28.3 | 28.6 |
% High school graduate (Dept of Education (2024-2025))⁹ | 84.4% | 84.1% |
% 8th grade English proficiency (2024-2025)⁷ | 39.6% | 41.1% |
% 8th grade math proficiency (2024-2025)⁷ | 25.4% | 28.8% |
% 8th grade science proficiency (2024-2025)⁷ | 23.0% | 27.1% |
Health Care System
Metric | EOCCO Counties | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
% Population with a disability (ACS5Y_S1810_2024) ¹ | 18.9% | 15.5% |
Ratio of population to dentists ² ¹⁰ | 2,434:1 | 1,582:1 |
Ratio of population to physicians assistants³ ¹⁰ | 1,696:1 | 1,363:1 |
Ratio of population to MDs³ ¹⁰ | 355:1 | 331:1 |
% Uninsured (ACS5Y_2024 S2701)¹ | 6.9% | 5.9% |
Community
Metric | EOCCO Counties | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
% of Total working age population in labor force (Year: 2025)⁴ | 54.3% | 60.4% |
% Children in single parent households (ACS5Y_DP02_2024) ¹ | 6.4% | 5.3% |
Food
Metric | EOCCO Counties | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
% Households receiving food stamps(ACS5Y_S2201_2024)¹ | 20.2% | 16.0% |
Impact and Investments
Funding and Finances
GOBHI received a total of $103.3 million in funds in 2025. We are committed to empowering our communities to deliver the best possible care to our members through innovative funding approaches.
GOBHI utilizes multiple payment methods for providers; capitation, fee for service, value based payments, and incentive metrics to name a few.
GOBHI is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that manages diverse funding streams to strengthen care systems, improve health outcomes, and integrate physical, behavioral, and oral health services.
In 2025, GOBHI distributed $2,933,816 to providers through value-based payment arrangements for meeting or exceeding key quality metrics.
GOBHI Incentive Measure Program
In alignment with the CCO Contract and Value Based Payments (VBP), GOBHI offered incentive measures in 2025 for our contracted Community Mental Health Programs (CMHPs), totaling $3 million. These funds were distributed to CMHPs in proportion to their county’s average EOCCO monthly enrollment and their individual performance.
The incentive measures for 2025 included:
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SUD Initiation, Engagement, and Treatment (IET): The IET metric encourages coordination across the network of care providers for substance use treatment and helps ensure people have timely access to appropriate care. Percentage of new substance use disorder (SUD) diagnosis episodes that resulted in initiation of treatment within 14 days and continued engagement within 34 days of the initial treatment.
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Assessments for Children in Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) Custody: Children (3-17) in ODHS Custody for 60 Days receive a mental health assessment within 60 days of notification to CCO.
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Social Emotional Health: Members ages 1-5 years old (Kindergarten Readiness) who meet continuous enrollment criteria and receive issue focused intervention / treatment services.
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Language Access: Members with a language access enrollment designation, who received a service from a CMHP that included an OHA Registered Certified or Qualified Interpreter, or an in language visit with an OHA Proficient provider.
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Behavioral Health Access: Three distinct access measures that reflect offering timely intakes, timely follow-up services following intake, and access to peer supports following discharge from acute care settings.
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Increased Capacity of Certified or Qualified Interpreters: CMHPs based on enrollment size increase the number of staff who meet OHA Language Proficient, Certified, or Qualified in order to provide translation services for members.
Workforce Development
GOBHI has made significant investments to strengthen the behavioral health workforce across Eastern Oregon. In 2022, GOBHI launched the “Come Care with Us” campaign and a dedicated job posting website at bhcareers.org to support local employers, featuring powerful video testimonials from Community Mental Health Programs highlighting the experience of living and working in behavioral health in Eastern Oregon.
In 2025, the campaign achieved an impressive reach and impressions, generating approximately 42,000 clicks.
It has introduced many to GOBHI and the CMHPs, sparking collaboration inquiries from institutions like Eastern Oregon University. Using platforms like LinkedIn, Meta, Google, and YouTube.
GOBHI also funded eight college scholarships in behavioral health, social services, and addiction services through Blue Mountain Community College and Treasure Valley Community College. To further support recruitment, GOBHI hired a dedicated sourcing specialist to assist CMHPs with filling vacancies through job postings, targeted social media campaigns, and strategic advertising. Additionally, GOBHI continued to elevate the peer workforce by hosting its second annual Peer Workforce Conference, celebrating and supporting peer professionals across the region.
Looking ahead to 2026, GOBHI is excited to host the first-ever behavioral health track for the MedQuest Camps, giving high school seniors a unique opportunity to explore careers in behavioral health.
For questions about GOBHI’s Workforce Development Campaign, please contact GOBHI’s Chief Human Resources Officer, Julie Leutschaft, MPA, MHA, at jleutschaft@gobhi.org
Behavioral Health Service Array
GOBHI, on behalf of EOCCO, administers the behavioral health benefit for its Oregon Health Plan (OHP) members. The behavioral health benefit encompasses a wide array of mental health, substance use disorder (SUD), and social services aimed at improving the well-being of our members.
2025 Service Array Highlights
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Services increased slightly (6%) while the number of members served decreased by 3%.
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Proportionally, mental health outpatient services for adults increased while the proportion of adult SUD outpatient services decreased.
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A 46% Increase in youth served in Intensive in-home behavioral health treatment (IIBHT).
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Doubled the number of adults screened for entry and engagement into behavioral health services.
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Crisis services for adults increased 27% in terms of members served and services provided.
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Supported employment services increased 45% in terms of members served, and 93% in services provided.
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The number of members receiving medication assisted treatment (MAT) services increased 91% while services provided tripled.
Overview
230,098
Total services were provided
6.1% increase over 2024
Non-Emergent Medical Transportation (NEMT)
The NEMT program connects our members to physical, behavioral, and oral health care services. We partner with local transportation providers and volunteer drivers to coordinate free rides for Oregon Health Plan members to and from scheduled medical appointments.
GOBHI administers this program on behalf of EOCCO and serves members in the 12-county EOCCO region, as well as fee-for-service members in Hood River and Wasco counties.
Top 10 Most Common Ride Types
2025 NEMT Highlights
158,576
Total rides provided
14.5% increase over 2024
6,664,055
Total miles driven
42 miles
Average ride distance
145,386
GOBHI’s NEMT team
made or received
calls scheduling rides
Clinical Services
In 2025, GOBHI’s Care Management and Utilization Management scaled operations, handling thousands of requests and implementing OHA-mandated data-driven processes for enhanced member support.
2025 Performance by the Numbers
4,914
Total authorization requests processed
Reviewed nearly 5,000 requests, including 2,805 standard and 1,249 urgent
pre-service authorizations
936
Emergency department outreach attempts
Proactive outreach for ED visits to address barriers and coordinate follow-up care.
857
New care coordination
cases opened
Expanded reach to assist members with complex human services needs.
2025 Highlights
Monitored and provided care management services for:
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3 members at the Oregon State Hospital.
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40 members who were enrolled in a forensic program.
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169 members who were part of the civil commitment process.
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197 members who were voluntarily placed at an acute psychiatric hospital level of care.
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936 members who visited the emergency department received outreach or had outreach attempts made.
New Processes and Specialized Roles
Risk Stratification
A system for categorizing members into low, moderate, or high-risk groups using multiple data sources such as claims, assessments, referrals, and event notifications to identify risk levels, care gaps, and physical, behavioral, developmental, dental, and social health needs.
Standardized Outreach and Extensions
CCOs to make use of the available 14 day extension prior to issuing a denial based on lack of information.
This includes member notification and outreach as well as three provider outreach attempts.
Specialized Support: Coaches and Navigators
Coach: Skill-based advocacy
Navigator: Coordinates earliest appointments and supports members with transportation
Our Programs
For a list of updates from all of GOBHI's programs, please download the full 2025 annual report.
Workplace Culture at GOBHI
Exceptional care starts with an exceptional workplace.
At GOBHI, we don’t just talk about impact — we create it. We believe lasting change in our communities begins with empowered, passionate people, and we are relentless in our commitment to building a workplace where every team member feels valued, energized, and inspired to do their best work.
Our team is at the heart of everything we do. Whether advancing behavioral health services, strengthening child welfare, or supporting rural communities, GOBHI employees lead with purpose, compassion, and unwavering dedication. In return, we invest deeply in our people — because when you thrive, so do the communities we serve.
We’ve built a culture that champions collaboration, celebrates achievements, and prioritizes well-being alongside performance. Here, you’ll find a team that lifts each other up, steps in when it matters most, and recognizes both the everyday efforts and the extraordinary wins.
We back that commitment with a powerful total rewards package, including competitive wages, flexible remote work opportunities, best-in-class benefits, generous paid time off, paid sabbaticals, a community day of service, tuition reimbursement, and ongoing professional development. We are committed to helping you grow, both personally and professionally.
Explore opportunities at GOBHI Careers or visit gobhi.org
GOBHI Organizational Chart
Closing Remarks
With Gratitude and Looking Ahead
We extend our sincere thanks to the GOBHI Board of Directors, our dedicated staff, and our valued community partners. Your commitment, collaboration, and shared vision make this work possible, and we are grateful for the role each of you plays in strengthening behavioral health across our region.
As we reflect on 2025, we are proud of the progress we’ve made together in expanding access, supporting communities, and building a stronger, more responsive system of care for rural and frontier Oregon. These accomplishments are a direct result of your passion, innovation, and dedication.
Looking ahead, we remain committed to continuing this important work—deepening partnerships, investing in our workforce, and ensuring individuals and families have access to the support they need to thrive. We are honored to move forward together in service of healthier, more connected communities.
With gratitude,
Ann Ford, CEO