The Department of Justice sued Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. for allegedly dispensing opioids and other controlled substances at pharmacies across the US while ignoring red flags that the prescriptions were likely illegal.
The lawsuit claims Walgreens pharmacists filled millions of prescriptions that lacked a legitimate medical purpose and then sought reimbursements under various federal health care programs. The suit, filed Jan. 16 in federal court in Illinois, alleges that Walgreens pharmacists faced pressure from corporate leadership to dispense the drugs quickly.
“Pharmacies serve as critical gatekeepers against the diversion of controlled substances,” lawyers for the government said in the lawsuit. “For years, even as the opioid epidemic ravaged this country, Walgreens failed to meet that responsibility.”
Walgreens is among a number of pharmacies, drug manufacturers and distributors that have collectively agreed to pay tens of billions of dollars to resolve various lawsuits filed by state and local governments accusing them of mishandling opioids. The painkillers have been blamed for more than half a million US deaths since the year 2000.
The lawsuit focuses on conduct over the last 12 years, when Wallgreens allegedly filled prescriptions for dangerous and excessive quantities of opioids and the so-called “trinity,” an especially dangerous combination of an opioid, a benzodiazepine and a muscle relaxant.
A spokesperson for Walgreens said the company’s pharmacists fill legitimate prescriptions in accordance with all laws and regulations. The company sued the US Drug Enforcement Administration on Thursday, accusing the agency of unlawfully imposing stricter requirements on pharmacists in an effort to crack down on the dispersement of opioids for non-medical uses.
The company’s lawsuit claims the DEA is now requiring pharmacists to ensure the legitimacy of prescriptions before filling them, or else face penalties under the Controlled Substances Act. In its complaint, Walgreens claims earlier DEA regulations placed “only limited obligations” on pharmacists to refuse to fill prescriptions and that the shift in policy was not adopted following the proper rulemaking process.
“We will not stand by and allow the government to put our pharmacists in a no-win situation, trying to comply with ‘rules’ that simply do not exist,” the company said in a statement.
Walgreens shares dropped 8.5% in trading after US markets closed Jan. 17. They’ve lost 44% in the past 12 months through Friday’s close.
Photo: Photographer: Justin Merriman/Bloomberg
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