CVS Facing Federal Lawsuit, Accused Of Illegally Filling Opioid Prescriptions

WOONSOCKET, RI — The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Rhode Island-based pharmacy/retail chain CVS Health, accusing the company of illegally filling prescriptions for opioids and other drugs "that lacked a medical purpose."

In a civil complaint unsealed in federal court in Providence, the DOJ accused CVS of filling the unlawful prescriptions — in violation of the U.S. Controlled Substances Act — and violating the False Claims Act. Federal officials said the Woonsocket company violated the False Claims Act by seeking reimbursement from federal health care programs for some of the illegal prescriptions.

"We have cooperated with the DOJ’s investigation for more than four years, and we strongly disagree with the allegations and false narrative within this complaint," a CVS spokesperson said. "We will defend ourselves vigorously against this misguided federal lawsuit, which follows on the heels of years of litigation over these issues by state and local governments — claims that already have been largely resolved by a global agreement with the participating state attorneys general."

According to the complaint, CVS knowingly filled prescriptions for controlled substances "that lacked a legitimate medical purpose, were not valid, and/or were not issued in the usual course of professional practice," from Oct. 17, 2013, to present.

The prescriptions written included excessive quantities of opioids, early refills of opioids, and trinity prescriptions, federal officials said. Trinity prescriptions are a dangerous and often abused combination of drugs made up of an opioid, a benzodiazepine, and a muscle relaxant.

"Opioid deaths remain a scourge on communities across Rhode Island and the nation, robbing families of loved ones and leaving a path of devastation in their wake," U.S. Attorney Zachary Cunha said. "This lawsuit alleges that CVS failed to exercise its critical role as gatekeeper of dangerous prescription opioids and, instead, facilitated the illegal distribution of these highly addictive drugs, including by pill mill prescribers. When corporations such as CVS prize profits over patient safety and overburden their pharmacy staff so that they cannot carry out the basic responsibility of ensuring that prescriptions are legitimate, we will use every tool at our disposal to see that they answer for it."

According to the DOJ, CVS also filled large quantities of prescriptions for controlled substances written by prescribers it knew were engaged in "pill mill practices." Pill mill is a common term for a prescriber who issues many controlled substance prescriptions without a medical purpose.

Federal officials said CVS ignored substantial evidence from various sources, including its own pharmacists and internal data, indicating that its stores were dispensing unlawful prescriptions.

CVS operates about 9,000 pharmacies in the United States.

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