House committee to hold first meeting in Dept. of Health investigation Monday

OKLAHOMA CITY (KOKH) — The House Special Investigation Committee plans to meet Monday to begin discussions on apparent mismanagement at the Oklahoma Department of Health.

The committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. Dec. 11 with the former director of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services Preston Doerflinger, acting director of the Department of Health, Denise Northrup, acting director of the OMES, and Chris Benge, chief of staff for Governor Mary Fallin.

The committee, headed by State Rep. Josh Cockroft, is looking into the mismanagement of $30 million taxpayer dollars at the OSDH. The three state officials were initially subpoenaed but all agreed to meet with in the committee voluntarily.

The investigation comes after revelations that OSDH lost a few million dollars which has led to layoffs and furloughs for all employees. The head of the agency, Terry Cline, resigned from his position as well as several other leaders. The Oklahoma State Auditor's Office is also performing an audit on the agency. House Speaker Charles McCall says that the committee could expand their focus if mismanagement is found at other agencies.