Walgreens ordered to pay $300M for filling illegal opioid prescriptions

Illinois-based national pharmacy chain Walgreens has been ordered by the Department of Justice to pay $300 million in fines for illegally filling invalid opioid prescriptions.

According to a statement from the DOJ, the company also violated the False Claims Act when it sought payment for many of those invalid prescriptions by Medicare and other federal health care programs

In a complaint filed in January of this year, the government alleges that from August 2012 through March 1, 2023, Walgreens knowingly filled millions of unlawful controlled substance prescriptions around the country. The prescriptions included excessive quantities of opioids, many filled significantly early, and prescriptions for an abused combination of three drugs known as a “trinity.”