California's essential health care facilities are wasting money on expensive contract labor amid chronic staffing shortages, even as agencies involved report hundreds of millions of dollars in savings from unfilled positions, a new report shows.

The report by the California State Auditor , released Thursday, focused on three Central California facilities that house incarcerated or institutionalized individuals, or those deemed incompetent to stand trial: Salinas Valley State Prison, Porterville Developmental Center, and Atascadero State Hospital. Each is separately run by the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Department of Developmental Services, and the Department of State Hospitals, respectively.

The audit determined that vacancy rates at the facilities have grown sign

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