Happy birthday to Mark Hatfield on what would have been his 100th birthday
This year, Northwest Health Foundation hits a huge milestone: 25 years of grantmaking and advancing health in Oregon and SW Washington. In honor of that milestone, we are some of celebrating the people and organizations who have been most influential on this journey. This is the first in a series of blog posts.
Today, July 12, 2022, would have been Mark Hatfield’s 100th birthday. While he is no longer with us, today is the perfect day to highlight his role in creating NWHF and how his expertise set the foundation up for the critical work we do today.
Quick context setting: In 1938, the Physicians Association of Clackamas County became the first prepaid health plan in the nation, emerging from a partnership between a large local employer and a group of area physicians. Eventually, this partnership grew into the nonprofit PACC Health Plans and PACC HMO.
Fast forward almost 60 years, in 1997, PACC was sold to a for-profit health insurance corporation. At the time, Oregon law required the net assets continue to be used for community benefit. Endowed with these assets, Northwest Health Foundation (us!) emerged with the mission to advance, support and promote the health of the people of Oregon and Southwest Washington, which was the footprint of PACC's service area.
Former United States Senator Mark O. Hatfield became the first Chair of Northwest Health Foundation’s Board of Directors. As the story goes, Senator Hatfield was strategic in ensuring the organization kept its 501(c)(4) status, and 25 years later we are taking full advantage of the opportunities it provides. Senator Hatfield lived and breathed politics; it is not surprising that he safeguarded this protected status for the generations that would follow him.
Depending on your age, you may not be familiar with Mark Hatfield’s work and how he shaped Oregon and and the U.S. His five decades of service included a stint in the Oregon Legislature. He was also the youngest Secretary of State in Oregon’s history and a two-term governor. Here’s senate.gov with his federal level highlights:
First elected to the United States Senate in 1966, Mark O. Hatfield of Oregon legislated to the beat of his own drum during his three decades of Senate service. Senator Hatfield often placed conscience before partisanship and remained steadfast in his views, earning him both admiration and criticism from his colleagues. Shaped by his military service during World War II and his Christian faith, Hatfield never approved a military authorization bill, from Vietnam to the Persian Gulf War of 1991. In 1971 he co-sponsored an amendment calling for the withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Vietnam. Hatfield staunchly opposed Cold War defense spending and renounced capital punishment. Consistently working across the aisle, he built a rapport with Democratic senators Robert C. Byrd and Edward M. Kennedy, often co-sponsoring major legislation. He is best known for his role as chairman of the Appropriations Committee (1981-1987, 1995-1997), where in 1995 he cast the lone Republican “nay” vote on a GOP-supported Balanced Budget Amendment, which ultimately fell one vote short of passage.
Even if you don’t know his work, you definitely recognize his name, as it can be found all over the Pacific NW. A trailhead, a marine science center, Portland State University’s School of Government, and more. His legacy ripples across the state and country.
As a direct result of Senator Hatfield’s advocacy during the conversion of the PACC to a foundation, we can do much that other foundations cannot:
Unlimited lobbying and advocacy (A couple recent examples: Ranked Choice Voting, Restoration of Voting Rights)
Invest in BIPOC power building (e.g., NWHF’s Civic Health Initiative)
Contribute to ballot measure campaigns (e.g., water fluoridation, Cover All Kids)
The impact of this tax status cannot be overstated. Most foundations are much more limited in how they can engage in political work.
What will the next 25 years hold as a result? We will continue to advance health in our region using all the tools at our disposal. Happy Birthday, Mark Hatfield!