Florida Department of Health Deputy Secretary for Operations Michele Tallent is on administrative leave. She's the subject of an internal investigation, state officials confirmed to The News Service of Florida Thursday night.
Tallent has filled a variety of roles at the department, including helping to hold down the fort in Tallahassee before new DOH Secretary Scott Rivkees came on board this summer. Before being named deputy secretary for operations, Tallent served as the director of the department's budget office, according to the agency's website.
Prior to joining DOH, she was a budget staffer for the Governor's Office of Policy and Budget. The resume listed on the DOH website also notes that Tallent has served as the budget director for the Agency for Health Care Administration.
Tallent, who first started working for the state in 1991, currently earns nearly $122,000 annually.
Tallent has been on administrative leave with pay since July 16. But the department's communications office offered no additional details, saying in a prepared statement that the agency cannot "comment on any pending internal investigation as they are confidential until completed."
