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Senate committee advances bill to add regional health equity coalitions, amendment reduces new coalitions from five to three
Summary
The Senate Committee on Health Care adopted an amendment that reduces the number of new regional health equity coalitions funded by Senate Bill 528 from five to three, and sent the amended bill to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means with a due-pass recommendation.
Chair Patterson opened a work session on Senate Bill 5 28 on March 25, 2025. A committee staff member summarized the bill as an appropriation to the Oregon Health Authority to add regional health equity coalitions and to fund two full‑time staff positions and expenses for facilities, childcare, transportation and translation services for coalition members.
The committee considered a posted dash‑1 amendment that, as presented by staff, reduced the number of new regional health equity coalitions from five to three and was reflected in the posted fiscal analysis. Vice Chair Hayden moved to adopt the dash‑1 amendment; the committee adopted the amendment by roll call and then voted to send the amended bill to the floor with a due‑pass recommendation and referral to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means by prior reference.
Why it matters: the bill creates recurring base funding for regional health equity coalitions, which are intended to support culturally specific engagement, remove access barriers such as childcare and transportation for members, and increase outreach capacity at the community level. Shifts in the number of funded coalitions affect how widely that capacity can be expanded.
Key details: committee staff noted the fiscal impact statement and that there was no revenue impact statement posted. The dash‑1 amendment and fiscal analysis were publicly available on OLIS. After the roll calls the chair closed the SB 528 work session and opened the next item.
Votes at a glance: The committee first adopted the dash‑1 amendment (motion passed). Roll call on the amendment recorded: Senator Campos — Aye; Senator Luthicombe — No; Senator Reynolds — Aye; Vice Chair Hayden — Aye; Chair Patterson — Aye. The committee then moved SB 5 28 as amended to the floor with a due pass recommendation and referral to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means. Final roll call recorded: Senator Campos — Aye; Senator Lythmicott — No; Senator Reynolds — Aye; Vice Chair Hayden — No; Chair Patterson — Aye. Motion passed and the bill will go to Ways and Means.
