The United States recently filed a lawsuit against Walgreens Boots Alliance, Walgreen Co., and subsidiaries (collectively, Walgreens) alleging that they dispensed millions of unlawful prescriptions in violation of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), followed by reimbursement for many of the prescriptions from federal health care programs in violation of the False Claims Act (FCA).
The complaint specifically alleges that from August 2012 through the present, Walgreens knowingly filled millions of prescriptions for controlled substances without a legitimate medical purpose, or that were not valid and/or were not issued in the usual course of professional practice. This includes prescriptions for early refills of opioids and prescriptions for the combination of drugs known as the “trinity” – an opioid, a benzodiazepine, and a muscle relaxant.
According to the complaint, Walgreens pharmacists filled the prescriptions at issue despite clear “red flags” that indicated the prescriptions were likely to be unlawful. The lawsuit also alleges that the company ignored substantial evidence from multiple sources – including its own pharmacists and internal data – that its stores were dispensing unlawful prescriptions.
Not only did Walgreens ignore its pharmacists who raised concerns about illegal prescriptions, it allegedly systematically pressured pharmacists to quickly fill prescriptions, without taking the time to confirm validity of each prescription. Walgreens also allegedly...
On February 26, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a significant False Claims Act (FCA) ruling in United States of America ex rel. Cheryl Taylor v. Healthcare ...