Oklahoma’a Health department makes cuts

Excerpt:

State Health Department programs serving 11,184 children and families have been eliminated as the agency deals with budget cuts caused by state tax revenue coming in far below estimates, Health Commissioner Terry Cline told a House budget panel Thursday.
Cline said the Health Department also reduced other programs as well as travel and training expenses and cut back on buying supplies and running the heat and air-conditioning at its headquarters to reduce its share of legislative-appropriated dollars by 7.5 percent this fiscal year.

… The Health Department this fiscal year also is eliminating a community water FLUORIDATION program and reducing its county jail inspection program, Cline said…

– END –

The Tulsa World, in an article titled Health agency reduces services, published Dec 4, 2009, reported:

” … If further cuts are needed, the agency will end a program designed to provide FLUORIDE to the water of some communities, Cline said. As a result, more people will seek dental care, which is more costly, he said…”