The Justice Department accuses CVS of writing illegal opioid prescriptions

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department on Wednesday quashed a civil lawsuit alleging that CVS Pharmacy Inc. and various subsidiaries filled “unlawful” prescriptions in violation of the federal Controlled Substances Act.

The complaint also alleges that CVS sought reimbursement from federal health programs for such prescriptions, violating the False Claims Act. CVS is the largest pharmacy chain in the United States, where there are more than 9,000 pharmacies.

A CVS representative said the company has been cooperating with the DOJ’s investigation for more than four years and strongly disagrees with the allegations and what it called a “misrepresentation” in the complaint.

The illegal prescriptions that CVS allegedly filled from October 17, 2013 to the present included dangerous and excessive amounts of opioids, premature fillings of opioids, and “Trinity” prescriptions – a dangerous combination of medications consisting of an opioid, a Benzodiazepine and a muscle relaxant, according to prosecutors.

CVS also allegedly filled large volumes of prescriptions for controlled substances that were written by prescribers who were known to operate in “pill mills” – that is, prescribers who filled large numbers of prescriptions for controlled substances without for medical purposes, investigators said.

According to the complaint, CVS ignored material evidence from multiple sources, including its own pharmacists and internal data, that suggested its stores were filling such prescriptions.

“This lawsuit alleges that CVS failed in its critical role as a guardian of dangerous prescription opioids and instead facilitated the illegal distribution of these highly addictive drugs, including by prescribing pill manufacturers,” said the U.S. Attorney for the District of Rhode Island, Zachary Cunha in a press release.

If CVS is found liable, it could face civil penalties for each prescription issued unlawfully, as well as treble damages and other penalties for each prescription reimbursed by federal health care programs.

The company said it was cooperating with investigators.

“We will vigorously defend ourselves against this misguided federal lawsuit, which follows years of litigation by state and local governments on these issues – claims that have already been largely resolved through a global agreement with the participating state attorneys general,” said Amy Thibault, director of external communications at CVS, in a written statement.

Each of the prescriptions in question was an FDA-approved opioid drug prescribed by a physician who was licensed, authorized and authorized by the government itself to write prescriptions for controlled substances, Thibault added.

The filing of the lawsuit follows Friday’s announcement that consulting firm McKinsey & Company has agreed to pay $650 million to settle a federal investigation into its work helping opioid maker Purdue Pharma boost sales of the company to boost the addictive drug OxyContin.

It’s the latest attempt by federal prosecutors to hold companies accountable that officials say has helped fuel the addiction and overdose crisis in the U.S., with opioids linked to more than 80,000 deaths per year in recent years became. Over the past decade, most of these deaths have been attributed primarily to illicit fentanyl, which is found in many illegal drugs. At the start of the epidemic, prescription pills were the leading cause of death.

Over the past eight years, drugmakers, wholesalers and pharmacies have agreed to settlements worth around $50 billion with governments – with most of the money going to combat the crisis.