Beitsch becomes focal point of smoking debate

Health Commissioner drew ire, accomplished goals

Commissioner Dr. Leslie M. Beitsch By Julie E. Bisbee

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Oklahoma's outgoing health commissioner says he is "unabashedly unapologetic" for ruffling feathers during his two years as Oklahoma's health commissioner.

He points to successes in imposing the state's first statewide smoking regulations and turning around a scandal-plagued department.

"If you're going to make an omelet, you have to break a few eggs," Dr. Leslie Beitsch said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Beitsch, 48, leaves his $180,000-a-year post Oct. 25 after nearly two years on the job. He plans to return to Florida for family reasons. He was assistant state health officer in that state before coming to Oklahoma. He hasn't announced future employment plans.

Beitsch took over the Oklahoma Health Department in June 2001, after deputy health commissioner Brent VanMeter had been arrested and several employees had been suspended. A multi-county grand jury would later issue 19 indictments to employees involved in a fraud scheme.

"We hired this man at a time of great upheaval in the department, and that's an understatement," said Dr. Jay Gregory, a Board of Health member and past president. "He led the agency out of its deepest, darkest time."

Regulations on smoking in public may have been Beitsch's most visible achievement in Oklahoma, but he is also proud of his work in restoring the reputation of the Health Department.

"This was an unprecedented scandal, not just unusual," Beitsch said. "There is absolutely no basis for comparison."

The state investigation of the department surrounded so-called "ghost" employees _ state workers who collected pay and benefits while doing little or no work. Nepotism was also a problem.

"We still had relatives on the payroll," Beitsch said. "It was absolutely mind boggling."

Even his critics credit Beitsch for revamping the department.

"He was a great organizer in the Health Department," said Dan Webb, a former state representative, who has publicly disagreed with Beitsch on regulations for smoking in public. "He helped move the Health Department from their problem era. He helped reorganize that health department after chaos."

While Beitsch quietly repaired the reputation of the Health Department, he fought his battle against smoking in public.

At times, Beitsch, who earned a medical degree from Georgetown University and a law degree from Harvard University, acted more like a trial attorney than a doctor. His wry, sarcastic style often drew the ire of Oklahoma legislators reluctant to pass laws that would limit smoking in public places and restaurants.

"His arrogance gets in the way," Webb said. "I believe people need to be aggressive about their opinions, but he was pretty arrogant."

Beitsch accepts criticism that his approach to the Legislature was abrasive at times.

"I think I could have done things without necessarily creating so much animosity there," he said.

But he also feels he had to fight for the health of Oklahomans.

"I'm the unappointed surgeon general for Oklahoma," Beitsch said. "That means you got to call things as you believe them to be true and tackle those things."

Beitsch upset some legislators when he enacted smoking regulations without their approval in June 2002. The regulations became tangled up in court and some lawmakers called Beitsch an enemy of small business owners.

Much of the 2003 legislative session was spent wrangling over how the regulations should be applied to restaurants and other public places. Before Beitsch, legislation in favor of smoking regulations rarely made it out of legislative committees.

The end result was a ban on smoking in all public workplaces, unless there is a separately ventilated smoking room. The ban took effect Sept. 1.

Restaurants have until 2006 to comply with the smoking regulations, and Beitsch is concerned that the tobacco industry will work to derail the regulations before they go into effect.

"I have no doubt the tobacco industry will use its resources to fight regulations on smoking," Beitsch said. "I just hope we can sustain them."

Beitsch said he is moving back to Florida for his family.

His wife, Barbara Wescott, and their two children, ages 12 and 14, moved to Orlando earlier this summer. He and his wife moved frequently when they were young and wanted to give their children the stability they never had.

"My children have gone to one school, and have known their group of friends all their lives," he said. "Florida is home to them. I'm glad they feel that way, but the timing wasn't great for me."

The Oklahoma Board of Health is expected to name a successor to Beitsch at its Nov. 13 meeting.

Dr. Mike Crutcher, state epidemiologist, already has said he'll seek the post. Crutcher will serve as interim commissioner after Beitsch leaves.
Beitsch said Crutcher is an excellent candidate for the job.