Latest news with #Engerman
American Military News
22-04-2025
- Business
- American Military News
Walgreens to pay $300M to settle with Department of Justice over opioid allegations
Walgreens Boots Alliance has agreed to pay $300 million to settle allegations that it filled millions of invalid prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances and illegally billed federal programs such as Medicare for those medications, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday. The federal government had alleged that Deerfield, Illinois-based Walgreens filled prescriptions with 'egregious red flags,' according to an amended complaint filed last week in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The government alleged that Walgreens filled prescriptions with high dosages of opioids, filled prescriptions for the drugs too early, and filled prescriptions for a dangerous combination of three drugs, from late 2013 to early 2023, according to the complaint. The government had alleged that Walgreens pressured its pharmacists to fill the prescriptions quickly, without giving them time to check if the prescriptions were valid. The government also alleged that Walgreens submitted the invalid prescriptions to federal health insurance programs, including Medicare for reimbursement, in violation of the federal False Claims Act. 'Walgreens knowingly filled numerous invalid controlled-substances prescriptions that were either not issued in the usual course of professional practice, not for a legitimate medical purpose, or both,' the government had alleged, according to the settlement agreement. 'Walgreens knew that such prescriptions raised significant concerns and were highly likely to be invalid. But Walgreens nevertheless filled numerous such prescriptions without resolving the significant concerns those prescriptions raised.' Walgreens has denied the allegations. The settlement agreement does not include any admission of wrongdoing or liability by Walgreens. 'We strongly disagree with the government's legal theory and admit no liability,' said Walgreens spokesperson Fraser Engerman in a statement Monday. 'Our pharmacists are dedicated healthcare professionals who care deeply about patient safety and continue to play a critical role in providing education and resources to help combat opioid misuse and abuse across our country.' Engerman said the settlement allows 'Walgreens to close all opioid related litigation with federal, state, and local governments and provides us with favorable terms from a cashflow perspective while we focus on our turnaround strategy that will benefit our team members, patients, customers, and shareholders.' As part of the settlement, Walgreens will also have to pay interest on the money, and it will have to pay an additional $50 million if the company is sold or merges with another company before fiscal year 2032. Walgreens announced last month that it had agreed to be sold to a private equity firm in a deal expected to close in the fourth quarter of the year. That sale announcement followed years of financial struggles for the retail pharmacy giant, which has been grappling with changing consumer habits, challenges related to medication reimbursement and a ill fated foray into primary care. As part of the settlement agreement, Walgreens must also maintain policies and procedures requiring pharmacists to make sure controlled substances are valid before filling prescriptions for them, among other requirements. U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a news release Monday, 'Pharmacies have a legal responsibility to prescribe controlled substances in a safe and professional manner, not dispense dangerous drugs just for profit.' The allegations against Walgreens were originally brought by whistleblowers who were former Walgreens employees, with the first of the whistleblowers filing a lawsuit in 2018. The U.S. Department of Justice intervened in the consolidated cases in August. The federal False Claims Act allows whistleblowers to sue on behalf of the U.S. government and receive a share of any money recovered. The four whistleblowers will receive 17.25% of the settlement money, according to the Department of Justice. The settlement announcement comes less than two months after Walgreens said it had agreed to pay a separate, $595 million settlement to a virtual care company over a dispute involving COVID-19 testing. ___ © 2025 Chicago Tribune. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Miami Herald
21-04-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Walgreens to pay $300M to settle with Department of Justice over opioid allegations
Walgreens Boots Alliance has agreed to pay $300 million to settle allegations that it filled millions of invalid prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances and illegally billed federal programs such as Medicare for those medications, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday. The federal government had alleged that Deerfield, Illinois-based Walgreens filled prescriptions with "egregious red flags," according to an amended complaint filed last week in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The government alleged that Walgreens filled prescriptions with high dosages of opioids, filled prescriptions for the drugs too early, and filled prescriptions for a dangerous combination of three drugs, from late 2013 to early 2023, according to the complaint. The government had alleged that Walgreens pressured its pharmacists to fill the prescriptions quickly, without giving them time to check if the prescriptions were valid. The government also alleged that Walgreens submitted the invalid prescriptions to federal health insurance programs, including Medicare for reimbursement, in violation of the federal False Claims Act. "Walgreens knowingly filled numerous invalid controlled-substances prescriptions that were either not issued in the usual course of professional practice, not for a legitimate medical purpose, or both," the government had alleged, according to the settlement agreement. "Walgreens knew that such prescriptions raised significant concerns and were highly likely to be invalid. But Walgreens nevertheless filled numerous such prescriptions without resolving the significant concerns those prescriptions raised." Walgreens has denied the allegations. The settlement agreement does not include any admission of wrongdoing or liability by Walgreens. "We strongly disagree with the government's legal theory and admit no liability," said Walgreens spokesperson Fraser Engerman in a statement Monday. "Our pharmacists are dedicated healthcare professionals who care deeply about patient safety and continue to play a critical role in providing education and resources to help combat opioid misuse and abuse across our country." Engerman said the settlement allows "Walgreens to close all opioid related litigation with federal, state, and local governments and provides us with favorable terms from a cashflow perspective while we focus on our turnaround strategy that will benefit our team members, patients, customers, and shareholders." As part of the settlement, Walgreens will also have to pay interest on the money, and it will have to pay an additional $50 million if the company is sold or merges with another company before fiscal year 2032. Walgreens announced last month that it had agreed to be sold to a private equity firm in a deal expected to close in the fourth quarter of the year. That sale announcement followed years of financial struggles for the retail pharmacy giant, which has been grappling with changing consumer habits, challenges related to medication reimbursement and a ill fated foray into primary care. As part of the settlement agreement, Walgreens must also maintain policies and procedures requiring pharmacists to make sure controlled substances are valid before filling prescriptions for them, among other requirements. U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a news release Monday, "Pharmacies have a legal responsibility to prescribe controlled substances in a safe and professional manner, not dispense dangerous drugs just for profit." The allegations against Walgreens were originally brought by whistleblowers who were former Walgreens employees, with the first of the whistleblowers filing a lawsuit in 2018. The U.S. Department of Justice intervened in the consolidated cases in August. The federal False Claims Act allows whistleblowers to sue on behalf of the U.S. government and receive a share of any money recovered. The four whistleblowers will receive 17.25% of the settlement money, according to the Department of Justice. The settlement announcement comes less than two months after Walgreens said it had agreed to pay a separate,$595 million settlement to a virtual care company over a dispute involving COVID-19 testing. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Epoch Times
21-04-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
Walgreens Agrees to Pay up to $350 Million in Civil Settlement Over Opioid Prescriptions
Walgreens has agreed to pay up to $350 million to settle allegations that it knowingly filled millions of unlawful opioid and other controlled-substance prescriptions and submitted false claims to federal health programs, the Justice Department announced April 21. The According to the government, the national pharmacy chain repeatedly dispensed prescriptions without verifying their legitimacy, including prescriptions for opioids in excessive quantities, those filled prematurely, and so-called 'trinity' drug combinations commonly associated with abuse. 'Pharmacies have a legal responsibility to prescribe controlled substances in a safe and professional manner, not dispense dangerous drugs just for profit,' DOJ said the amount is based on Walgreens's ability to pay. Under the agreement, Walgreens will pay $300 million—$150 million each to resolve civil claims under the CSA and FCA—with an additional $50 million if the company is sold, merged, or transferred prior to fiscal year 2032. According to the amended government complaint, Walgreens pharmacists allegedly filled invalid prescriptions even when presented with clear warning signs. In some cases, the prescriptions came from providers known to write unlawful scripts, and Walgreens allegedly pressured pharmacists to prioritize speed over safety while depriving them of tools to verify legitimacy, such as prescriber data and internal alerts. Related Stories 7/6/2023 6/10/2023 In total, the United States alleged that Walgreens violated the CSA from October 2013 to March 2023 and the FCA from August 2012 through March 2023. Walgreens, in an emailed statement to The Epoch Times, said it 'strongly disagrees with the government's legal theory and admits no liability.' 'Our pharmacists are dedicated healthcare professionals who care deeply about patient safety and continue to play a critical role in providing education and resources to help combat opioid misuse and abuse across our country,' said Fraser Engerman, senior director of media relations and issues management at Walgreens. 'This resolution allows us to close all opioid-related litigation with federal, state, and local governments and provides us with favorable terms from a cashflow perspective while we focus on our turnaround strategy that will benefit our team members, patients, customers, and shareholders,' Engerman said. The company did not admit liability under the terms of the agreement, which also resolves four whistleblower lawsuits filed by former employees, the DOJ said. The whistleblowers will receive a 17.25 percent share of the FCA-related recovery. 'This landmark civil settlement is the largest Controlled Substances Act resolution in our district's history and once again confirms the high priority our office has placed upon confronting those responsible for the opioid crisis here,' said U.S. Attorney Gregory Kehoe of the Middle District of Florida in the press release. As part of the settlement, Walgreens entered into a seven-year memorandum of agreement with the DEA and a five-year Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). Under the terms, Walgreens must improve compliance policies, provide staff training, monitor problematic prescribers, and maintain systems to block unlawful prescriptions. 'Importantly, Walgreens's agreements with the DEA and HHS-OIG provide swift relief in the form of monitoring and claims review that will improve Walgreens's practices immediately,' said U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Boutros for the Northern District of Illinois. 'Our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to ensure that opioids are properly dispensed and that taxpayer funds are only spent on legitimate pharmacy claims.' The civil settlement resolves allegations brought in four separate lawsuits filed by whistleblowers T.J. Novak, Elmer Mosley, K&V Group LLP, and Patrick Awa. All cases were consolidated in federal court in Illinois, where the DOJ intervened last year. Walgreens is among several drugmakers, distributors, and pharmacy chains that have agreed to pay approximately $50 billion in total to resolve lawsuits over their alleged roles in the opioid epidemic, according to In 2022, Walgreens agreed to pay up to $5.52 billion over 15 years to settle thousands of claims brought by state and local governments. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that nearly 727,000 people died from opioid overdoses in the United States between 1999 and 2022.
