CA Health System Pays $1.55 Million to Settle Claims Involving Handling of Controlled Substances

​A California health system has agreed to pay $1.55 million and enter into a corrective action plan to settle claims of alleged deficiencies regarding the handling of controlled substances at its hospitals and clinics, states a July 16, 2014, press release from the U.S. Department of Justice. According to the press release, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) began an investigation of the system after one of its facilities reported losses of over 20,000 tablets of hydrocodone in late 2010.