US accuses Walgreens of filling millions of illegitimate prescriptions

abcnews.go.com:

The U.S. Justice Department has filed a lawsuit accusing Walgreens of filling millions of prescriptions for Americans over the last decade and more without a legitimate purpose, including for dangerous amounts of opioids

DEERFIELD, Ill. — The U.S. Justice Department is accusing Walgreens of filling millions of prescriptions in the last decade and more without a legitimate purpose, including for dangerous amounts of opioids, according to a lawsuit filed this week.

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the complaint says the drugstore chain's pharmacists filled controlled substance prescriptions with clear red flags that indicated they were highly likely to be unlawful. Walgreens also systematically pressured pharmacists to fill prescriptions without taking the time to confirm their validity, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit says Walgreens filled “unlawful” prescriptions in violation of the federal Controlled Substances Act and sought reimbursement from federal health care programs for them in violation of the False Claims Act.

Walgreens, one of the country’s largest pharmacy chains, with over 8,000 locations, said in a statement that it stands behind its pharmacists. It said they say fill legitimate prescriptions for Food and Drug Administration-approved medications written by Drug Enforcement Administration-licensed prescribers in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.

Walgreens is also accused of ignoring evidence, including from its own pharmacists and internal data, that stores were dispensing unlawful prescriptions, according to the complaint. In addition, it allegedly deprived pharmacists of crucial information including by preventing them from warning each