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DUBLIN, Ohio, Dec. 23, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Cardinal Health, a global healthcare services and products company, today announced that it has reached a nationwide settlement with the Federal government, resolving the outstanding civil penalty portion of the company's 2012 administrative settlement with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). The 2012 settlement resulted in a two year suspension of Cardinal Health's registration to distribute controlled substances from its Lakeland, Fla. distribution center, but did not at the time resolve the Government's civil penalty claims. 

Under this settlement, Cardinal Health has agreed to pay $44 million to the Department of Justice (DOJ) to resolve this matter. The DOJ, including the DEA and the United States Attorneys' Offices for the M.D. Florida, the Southern District of New York, the District of Maryland, and the W.D. Washington and all other districts across the country have agreed to take no further administrative or civil action on these and related matters. Cardinal Health had previously disclosed the civil fines claims and a related accrual of $44 million in its public securities filings.

"These agreements allow us to move forward and continue to focus on working with all participants in addressing the epidemic of prescription drug abuse," said Craig Morford, Chief Legal and Compliance Officer, Cardinal Health. "To combat the scourge of opioid abuse successfully, this must be a collaborative effort that includes all parties -- the regulators, who set and license supply; the manufacturers, who produce medications; the physicians, who treat patients and prescribe medications; and the pharmacists, who fill those prescriptions. Collectively, we must focus on combatting the ever-changing tactics employed by those determined to divert medications for illegitimate use. Cardinal Health is committed to working with both public and private partners to do our part and find solutions."

Cardinal Health employs a large organization dedicated to maintaining and continuously improving a sophisticated anti-diversion program that includes advanced analytics, technology, and the deployment of teams of anti-diversion specialists and investigators embedded within our supply chain. The company also sponsors and leads numerous efforts used for education and prevention of abuse, including our Generation Rx program which has reached more than 600,000 people across the country. 

About Cardinal Health
Cardinal Health, Inc., a global health services and products company, brings scaled solutions that help our customers thrive in a changing world. We improve the cost-effectiveness of healthcare through solutions that improve the efficiency of the supply chain; optimize the process and performance of healthcare; provide clinically proven, daily use medical products and pharmaceuticals; and connect patients, providers, payers, pharmacists and manufacturers for seamless care coordination and better patient management. Backed by nearly 100 years of experience, we rank among the top 50 on the Fortune 500 and among the Fortune Global 100.  We support our partners with more than 37,000 employees in nearly 60 countries worldwide. For more information, visit cardinalhealth.com and @CardinalHealth on Twitter.

SOURCE Cardinal Health