By Forum Staff
In a civil complaint filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the Justice Department alleges that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Walgreen Co. and various subsidiaries dispensed millions of unlawful prescriptions in violation of the Controlled Substances Act and then sought reimbursement from various federal healthcare programs in violation of the False Claims Act.
Walgreens is one of the country’s largest pharmacy chains, with over 8,000 pharmacies across the country.
The complaint alleges that, from approximately August 2012 through the present, Walgreens knowingly filled millions of prescriptions for controlled substances that lacked a legitimate medical purpose, were not valid, and/or were not issued in the usual course of professional practice. Among the millions of unlawful prescriptions that Walgreens allegedly filled were prescriptions for dangerous and excessive quantities of opioids, prescriptions for early refills of opioids and prescriptions for the especially dangerous and abused combination of drugs known as the “holy trinity,” which is made up of an opioid, a benzodiazepine and a muscle relaxant.
The government alleges that Walgreens pharmacists filled these prescriptions despite clear “red flags” that indicated that the prescriptions were highly likely to be unlawful. The complaint alleges that Walgreens ignored substantial evidence from multiple sources that its stores were dispensing unlawful prescriptions, including from its own pharmacists and internal data.
The complaint further alleges that Walgreens systematically pressured its pharmacists to fill prescriptions quickly without taking the time needed to confirm each prescription’s validity. Walgreens also allegedly deprived its pharmacists of crucial information, including by preventing pharmacists from warning one another about certain prescribers.
The government alleges that by knowingly filling unlawful prescriptions for controlled substances, Walgreens violated the CSA and, where Walgreens sought reimbursement from federal healthcare programs, also violated the FCA. The complaint alleges that Walgreens’ actions helped to fuel the prescription opioid crisis and that, in some particularly tragic instances, patients died after overdosing on opioids shortly after filling unlawful prescriptions at Walgreens. If Walgreens is found liable, it could face civil penalties of up to $80,850 for each unlawful prescription filled in violation of the CSA and treble damages and applicable penalties for each prescription paid by federal programs in violation of the FCA. The court also may award injunctive relief to prevent Walgreens from committing further CSA violations.
“This country is in the midst of a serious opioid epidemic, and New York is no exception,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Carolyn Pokorny for the Eastern District of New York. “Walgreens, which operates one of the largest pharmacy chains in the United States, including nearly 300 pharmacies in the Eastern District of New York during the relevant time period, repeatedly ignored its obligations to ensure that these drugs did not fall into the wrong hands. My Office will continue to work with others in the Justice Department to combat the opioid crisis by holding pharmacies that fill unlawful prescriptions accountable.”
U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Anne Milgram added, “Walgreens placed the public in danger by disregarding their responsibility.”
