Mike Fogarty is the Chief Executive Officer of the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA), which is the agency responsible for administering the state's Medicaid programs. It operates with an annual budget of $2.6 billion. A recent editorial in the Sunday Oklahoman stated that Mr. Fogarty's job is "one of the toughest jobs in state government."

His public service career spans three decades. In 1971 he joined the Department of Human Services as a social worker. When he left the agency he was its Deputy Director. During the past 34 years he has also worked as a legislative assistant to Senator David Boren, a private sector attorney specializing in matters relating to public agency administration, and an administrator and owner/operator in the long-term care industry. His employment with OHCA began in 1995 when he became state Medicaid Director and Chief Operating Officer. From 1999 to present he has been the agency's Chief Executive Officer.

During his tenure at OHCA the agency has been nationally recognized as a leader in the development of a unique managed care program that integrates health maintenance organizations in the urban areas with primary care management in the rural areas. Oklahoma has been the leading state in extending Medicaid to citizens who are eligible but not enrolled. The Oklahoma Health Care Authority has taken optimal advantage of state-federal matching programs to expand medical coverage for children, pregnant women, and disabled and elderly adults. It has developed a rebate program which lessens the cost of prescription drugs. Greater emphasis has been placed on services aimed at prevention and early intervention. The number of health care providers participating in Medicaid has continually increased. And OHCA has pursued, through research and demonstration initiatives, the testing of new ideas for improving the quality of health care, increasing the number of people served, and decreasing the cost.

The regard with which Mr. Fogarty is held by his colleagues and associates is inspiring. An administrator who has worked with him for the past 10 years described how the working environment of the agency has improved because of his leadership. "Employees can individually and collectively work toward a common purpose to accomplish a well-defined goal. He empowers us every day to get the job done and never forgets to let us know how important our work is, how much it is appreciated, and how well we are performing." A former chairman of the OHCA Board said, "I think his greatest personal accomplishment has been to lead and support his staff as they accomplished the almost impossible tasks of keeping Medicaid effective and even broadening its reach in spite of all the financial problems, including three years of declining budgets."  Another colleague wrote that Mr. Fogarty "paints a picture and proposes a blueprint that empowers his staff, and yet he would humbly tell you that he is successful in achieving the agency's goals because of the hard work of many others." Mike Fogarty exemplifies the best in public service. As one of the deans at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine wrote, "He is a wonderful example of a talented, committed, creative and visionary administrator whose leadership has made and continues to make a difference in the lives of many Oklahomans."