Oklahoma City - COMANCHE COUNTY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL; SCOTT MICHENER, M.D.; MICHAEL RAMOS, M.D.; and ERNESTINE OLSON, A.P.R.N., have agreed to pay a combined $155,000 to settle civil penalty claims stemming from allegations they violated the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 and its regulations, announced United States Attorney Timothy J. Downing.
Michener, Ramos, and Olson are medical providers who worked in clinics affiliated with Comanche County Memorial Hospital in Lawton, Oklahoma. The United States alleges that from Oct. 10, 2016, to Oct. 19, 2018, the hospital and the individual providers did not maintain proper records related to orders of testosterone filled by the hospital and requested by Michener, Ramos, and Olson. The hospital’s purchase and delivery records did not contain the required names, addresses, and DEA registration numbers of the individual providers to whom the controlled substances were distributed, and the purchase and delivery records maintained by the individual providers did not contain the required names, addresses, and DEA registration numbers of the supplier or the actual date of receipt.
To resolve these allegations, the hospital agreed to pay $70,000, Michener and Ramos each agreed to pay $35,000, and Olson agreed to pay $15,000 to the United States.
In reaching this settlement, the hospital and the individual providers did not admit liability, and the government did not make any concessions about the legitimacy of the claims. The agreement allows the parties to avoid the delay, expense, inconvenience, and uncertainty involved in litigating the case.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Office of Diversion Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ronald R. Gallegos and Amanda R. Johnson prosecuted the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
