A7
THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, MAY 25, 2019
Center: Wev’s stinging comments come at a sensitive time
Continued from Page A1
CEO, countered. “What we
had done is worked our-
selves into being in a really
unworkable situation with
Clatsop Behavioral Health.”
Wev’s stinging comments
come at a sensitive time for
regional health care and men-
tal health administrators in
the Oregon Health Plan, the
state’s version of Medicaid
for low-income and disabled
patients.
GOBHI
and
Port-
land-based Moda Inc. are
competing with the Colum-
bia Pacifi c Coordinated Care
Organization to oversee the
Oregon Health Plan in Clat-
sop, Columbia and Tilla-
mook counties.
The
Oregon
Health
Authority is expected to
award the contract in July,
and it is possible the state
could allow both to serve the
counties.
The competition has
drawn concern from county
commissioners and some
health care and mental health
providers who question
whether it makes sense for
the region to have two coor-
dinated care organizations.
Launched by the state in
2012, coordinated care orga-
Colin Murphey/The Astorian
The crisis respite center in Warrenton is for sale.
nizations essentially function
as regional health care man-
agers, working with provid-
ers to improve prevention,
manage chronic illness and
reduce costs in Medicaid.
The jockeying over the
past several months has
hinted at the potential for
disruption.
The Columbia Pacifi c
Coordinated Care Organiza-
tion, for example, has chosen
CareOregon to administer
fi nancing for Clatsop Behav-
ioral Healthcare — Clatsop
County’s mental health con-
tractor, which operates the
crisis respite center — start-
ing in June. GOBHI has long
held that role.
“The state is requiring
coordinated care organiza-
tions to ‘double down’ on
better integration of care
and benefi ts between med-
ical and behavioral health
services in 2020,” Mimi
Haley, the CEO of Colum-
bia Pacifi c, said in an email
about the switch. “This inte-
gration, now, allows us to
propel the kind of coordina-
tion that our members expect
and deserve.”
Earlier this year, GOBHI
announced it would put the
crisis respite center build-
ing on Marlin Avenue up
for sale. Bonnie Thompson,
the director of health system
improvements at GOBHI,
also stepped down from the
board.
The coalition behind the
respite center had intended to
put the operation of the facil-
ity out for bid this year, invit-
ing competition to Clatsop
Behavioral Healthcare. But
Monica Steele, the interim
county manager, said that
process is on hold given the
uncertainty over the building
sale.
Clatsop
Behavioral
Healthcare has the fi rst
option to buy the respite cen-
ter. The agency is interested
in purchasing the building
and preserving crisis care
and residential treatment at
the 16-bed facility.
“It’s a valuable service to
our community,” Amy Baker,
the agency’s executive direc-
tor, said. “We’ve seen some
really impressive successes
with clients.”
Campbell,
GOBHI’s
CEO, said GOBHI remains
in the coalition behind the
respite center. But he tried to
explain to Wev on Wednes-
day night why a broader role
was unworkable.
GOBHI was charged with
overseeing Clatsop Behav-
ioral Healthcare’s perfor-
mance, owned the building
that housed the respite center
and had a vote on the board.
“We simply stepped back
from taking a decision-mak-
ing role or having a vote, to
try to give some space to all
that was going on around the
respite center at that point
in time,” he told county
commissioners.
GOBHI only expected to
own the respite center build-
ing for a year or two, he said,
before selling it to Clatsop
Behavioral Healthcare or
another provider.
Campbell insisted “we
in no way, shape or form
intended to pull the rug out
from under the coalition.”
Wev wasn’t buying it.
“I’m sorry. I simply
believe that you pulled the
rug out on us,” the commis-
sioner said, adding the moves
had caused GOBHI “a lot of
ill will in the community.”
“I’m sorry for doing that,”
Campbell said. “I apologize
on behalf of myself and the
(GOBHI) board.”
Trial: Copell, Wilkins will be sentenced in June
Continued from Page A1
Howard Vinge, 71, was
beaten to death inside his
RV in September 2016.
His body was dumped
several days later down
an embankment along
U.S. Highway 30 east of
Astoria.
Copell and Wilkins, who
had lived with Vinge for
about two months before
his death, took his RV and
a sedan . The couple aban-
doned the RV after it broke
down on U.S. Highway 26
near Hamlet and drove the
car to Arizona, where they
were arrested.
Copell and Wilkins
both face a minimum of 25
years in prison . They will
be sentenced in June .
Beau Peterson and Scott
McCracken, who are dep-
uty district attorneys, pros-
ecuted the case. The Clat-
sop County Major Crimes
Team investigated.
“Beau and Scott did a
great job,” District Attor-
ney Ron Brown said . “They
worked really hard.”
Brown also credited
the major crimes team for
gathering the voluminous
amount of evidence that
helped lead to the guilty
verdict.
Alexander Hamalian,
Copell’s attorney, said he
will likely appeal .
Copell had an earlier
charge of hindering pros-
ecution dismissed. Oregon
has no statute for aiding
and abetting after the fact,
Hamalian said, and a ques-
tion for the higher courts
could be whether the case
should have proceeded
after the hindering prose-
cution charge was dropped .
“I would be pretty
shocked if there wasn’t
an opinion one way or
another offered by the
C ourt of A ppeals, if not the
Supreme Court,” he said.
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