Moda Health

Moda Health is the consumer-facing brand of Moda, Inc., a Portland, Oregon-based health insurance company. Its business developed from a dental insurance plan associated with the Oregon Dental Society, now the Oregon Dental Association, and later expanded into broader medical and dental insurance operations. The company was formerly known as ODS Health and retained the ODS name for certain Oregon dental plans after adopting the Moda Health identity in 2013. The organization’s original focus was dental coverage. Its subsequent development reflected the broader evolution of regional nonprofit and affiliated health plans, with products serving individuals, employers, and other members of the health-benefits market. Moda Health has provided medical and dental insurance in Oregon, Alaska, and Texas, and previously operated in Washington State before withdrawing from that market in 2016. The company is associated with Delta Dental and has operated as a regional rather than globally distributed insurer. Moda’s corporate history includes several significant facilities and naming decisions in Portland. The company announced in 1996 that it would relocate to a new office building, later known as ODS Tower, and moved into the completed building in July 1999. Its former headquarters was sold the following month for $9.6 million to retirement trusts associated with Les Schwab Tires and the law firm Stoel Rives. The building later became part of the company’s visible Portland identity as Moda Tower. In May 2013, ODS changed its corporate name to Moda Health. Later that year, the company entered into a sponsorship agreement with the Portland Trail Blazers, resulting in the former Rose Garden Arena being renamed the Moda Center. The naming-rights agreement substantially increased the visibility of the brand beyond insurance. Moda has also sponsored women’s professional soccer, including serving as a shirt sponsor of Seattle Reign of the National Women’s Soccer League. The company faced serious financial pressure during the initial implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Moda participated in the federal risk-corridors program, a temporary mechanism intended to reduce insurers’ exposure to unexpectedly high claims in the new individual insurance market. Congressional restrictions limited the government’s ability to make the expected payments, leaving Moda and other insurers with substantial unrecovered losses. In January 2016, Oregon and Alaska regulators temporarily suspended Moda Health’s ability to sell insurance after the losses weakened its capital position. The restrictions were lifted in February 2016 after Moda’s parent company agreed to provide additional funds. Moda subsequently pursued litigation against the United States over the unpaid risk-corridor amounts. The company won a $214 million judgment in the Court of Federal Claims, but the judgment was overturned by the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in 2018. The United States Supreme Court later ruled in Moda Health’s favor. These proceedings made the company a prominent example of the financial and legal consequences that followed the federal risk-corridors program. Moda Health’s present identity therefore combines regional health-insurance operations with a highly visible Portland corporate presence. Its principal offerings remain medical and dental coverage, while its brand architecture reflects both the legacy ODS dental business and the broader Moda Health name.

Moda Health traces its origins to the Oregon Dental Society, now the Oregon Dental Association. It began as a dental insurance plan and initially operated under the ODS identity. The organization’s early business was centered on dental benefits, but it later expanded into medical insurance and became a broader regional health insurer. In 1995, the Oregon Department of Justice investigated allegations that a most-favored-nation clause in the company’s contracts with dentists raised antitrust concerns. The investigation resulted in removal of the clause. The episode was an early regulatory challenge for the organization and reflected the scrutiny that can accompany contracting practices in health-care markets. ODS announced in 1996 that it would move to a new Portland office building. The company occupied the completed building in July 1999. In August 1999, it sold its former headquarters for $9.6 million to retirement trusts associated with Les Schwab Tires and the law firm Stoel Rives. The newer property became closely associated with the company and was later known as ODS Tower and then Moda Tower. The company changed its name from ODS Health to Moda Health in May 2013. The rebrand was intended to support a broader identity beyond the organization’s dental origins, although the ODS designation continued to be used for some Oregon dental plans. Later in 2013, Moda announced a sponsorship arrangement with the Portland Trail Blazers. The former Rose Garden Arena was renamed the Moda Center, creating a prominent association between the insurer and Portland’s professional basketball venue. Moda also became a shirt sponsor of Seattle Reign, a National Women’s Soccer League club. By 2013, the company was reported to have nearly 1,400 employees and annual revenue of approximately $1.7 billion. That figure is historical and should not be treated as a current financial measure. Moda’s insurance operations included Oregon, Alaska, and Texas, while Washington State was part of its footprint before the company left that market in 2016. The implementation of the Affordable Care Act created one of the most consequential periods in Moda’s history. The federal law established a temporary risk-corridors program for the first three years of the new individual insurance market. The mechanism was intended to limit losses for insurers facing uncertain claims experience and to encourage participation in a new and relatively untested market. Congressional restrictions, however, prevented the administration from using discretionary funds to make the full payments anticipated under the program. Moda was among the insurers affected by the resulting shortfall. The unrecovered risk-corridor amounts contributed to major financial losses and weakened the company’s capital position. In January 2016, regulators in Oregon and Alaska temporarily suspended Moda Health’s authority to sell insurance. The restrictions were removed in February 2016 after the parent company agreed to raise additional funds. Moda then litigated against the federal government to recover amounts it argued were owed under the risk-corridors program. The Court of Federal Claims awarded the company $214 million, but the Federal Circuit reversed that decision in June 2018. The United States Supreme Court later ruled in Moda Health’s favor, resolving the central legal dispute in the company’s favor. Today, Moda Health is identified with medical and dental insurance in selected United States markets, particularly Oregon and Alaska, as well as Texas. Its history combines a dental-plan origin, expansion into comprehensive health insurance, corporate rebranding, highly visible sports and property naming partnerships, and litigation arising from the federal health-reform program.

1. 2018Federal Circuit reverses risk-corridor judgment

   The Federal Circuit overturned the lower court’s judgment in the company’s risk-corridor case.

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2. 2017Court awards Moda $214 million

   The Court of Federal Claims entered a $214 million judgment for Moda in its risk-corridor payment dispute with the federal government.

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3. 2016Temporary sales restrictions and capital support

   Oregon and Alaska regulators temporarily restricted Moda’s insurance sales after financial losses; the restrictions were lifted after the parent company agreed to raise additional funds.

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4. 2013ODS Health becomes Moda Health

   The company adopted the Moda Health name while retaining the ODS designation for certain Oregon dental plans.

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5. 2013Portland arena receives Moda naming

   A sponsorship agreement with the Portland Trail Blazers renamed the former Rose Garden Arena as the Moda Center.

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6. 1999Move to new headquarters

   ODS moved into its new Portland office building in July; the former headquarters was sold the next month for $9.6 million.

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7. 1996New Portland headquarters announced

   ODS announced plans to move to the office building that later became associated with the ODS Tower and Moda Tower names.

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8. 1995Antitrust investigation into dentist contracts

   The Oregon Department of Justice investigated a most-favored-nation clause in ODS contracts with dentists, and the clause was removed.

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A regional health-insurance provider combining medical and dental coverage with a strong Pacific Northwest identity and a legacy in dental-plan administration.

• Moda Health medical insuranceMedical insurance

  Moda Health’s medical-insurance business serves selected individual, family, employer, and other health-benefits markets. The company has operated medical plans in Oregon, Alaska, and Texas, with Washington State included in its historical footprint before 2016. Its participation in the Affordable Care Act individual market exposed the insurer to the financial uncertainty that led to the risk-corridors litigation.

• Moda Health dental insuranceDental insurance

  Dental insurance is the company’s original line of business, developed from a plan associated with the Oregon Dental Society. The dental business remained an important part of the company after its expansion into medical coverage and rebranding as Moda Health. In Oregon, some dental plans continued to use the legacy ODS name.

• 2013Moda Center naming-rights sponsorship

  Portland · Oregon · United States

  Moda entered a sponsorship agreement with the Portland Trail Blazers that changed the name of the former Rose Garden Arena to the Moda Center. The agreement gave the recently rebranded insurer a highly visible association with Portland sports and civic life.

  Outcome. The arena adopted the Moda Center name, and the venue became one of the brand’s most recognizable public touchpoints.

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• Seattle Reign shirt sponsorship

  Seattle · Washington · United States

  Moda Health served as shirt sponsor of Seattle Reign, a National Women’s Soccer League team, extending its sports-marketing activity into women’s professional soccer.

  Outcome. The sponsorship placed the Moda Health brand on the club’s playing kit; the available reference does not specify the term or commercial results.

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• 2016Capital support after risk-corridor lossesStrategy

  Unpaid Affordable Care Act risk-corridor amounts contributed to financial losses and weakened Moda’s capital position.

  What changed. After regulators temporarily suspended sales in Oregon and Alaska, Moda’s parent company agreed to raise additional funds.

  Aftermath. The regulatory restrictions were lifted in February 2016, allowing the company to resume sales in the affected markets.

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• 2016Litigation over Affordable Care Act risk-corridor paymentsOther

  Moda argued that the federal government had failed to pay amounts promised under the temporary risk-corridors program.

  What changed. The company brought a claim against the United States and pursued the matter through the federal courts.

  Aftermath. Moda initially won a $214 million judgment, lost on appeal in 2018, and later prevailed in the United States Supreme Court.

  Court judgment. $214 million (2017 judgment)

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• 2013Rebrand from ODS Health to Moda HealthStrategy

  The company had expanded beyond its original dental-plan identity and sought a broader consumer-facing name.

  What changed. ODS Health changed its name to Moda Health while retaining ODS branding for certain Oregon dental plans.

  Aftermath. The Moda name was subsequently used in prominent sponsorship and property-naming initiatives, including the Moda Center.

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• 2013Portland Trail Blazers arena naming agreementOther

  Moda sought a high-profile association with its Portland home market after adopting its new corporate identity.

  What changed. The company agreed to sponsor the Portland Trail Blazers’ arena, resulting in the former Rose Garden Arena being renamed the Moda Center.

  Aftermath. The arena became a major source of public visibility for the Moda brand.

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• 1995Antitrust concerns over most-favored-nation contract clauseControversy

  The Oregon Department of Justice investigated whether a most-favored-nation clause in ODS contracts with dentists raised antitrust issues. The clause was removed after the investigation.

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• 2018Federal Circuit overturns Moda Health risk-corridor judgment

  The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed the lower court’s $214 million judgment in favor of Moda Health in the dispute over Affordable Care Act risk-corridor payments.

  LawsuitOther
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• 2017Court of Federal Claims awards Moda Health $214 million in risk-corridor case

  Moda Health prevailed in litigation against the United States concerning unpaid Affordable Care Act risk-corridor obligations. Judge Thomas C. Wheeler ordered the government to pay the company $214 million.

  LawsuitOther
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• 2016Oregon and Alaska temporarily restrict Moda Health insurance sales

  Regulators in Oregon and Alaska temporarily suspended Moda Health’s ability to sell insurance after losses connected to the Affordable Care Act risk-corridors program weakened the insurer’s capital position. The restrictions were lifted the following month after the parent company committed to raising additional funds.

  RegulationOther
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• 2013Moda Health enters Portland Trail Blazers naming-rights agreement

  A sponsorship agreement between Moda and the Portland Trail Blazers renamed the former Rose Garden Arena as the Moda Center, giving the insurer a prominent public-facing brand asset in its home city.

  CampaignOther
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1. Moda Health