Authored by Kimberly Hayek via The Epoch Times,
CVS Pharmacy Inc. and related entities agreed Tuesday to pay $315 million to resolve Justice Department allegations that the company illegally filled opioid and other controlled-substance prescriptions and billed many of them to Medicare and other federal health programs.
The sum settles claims that the company illegally filled such prescriptions from Oct. 17, 2013, through Dec. 2, 2025.
The government alleged CVS knowingly filled prescriptions that lacked a legitimate medical purpose, were not valid, or were not issued in the usual course of professional practice.
Those included dangerous and excessive quantities of opioids, early refills, and "trinity" combinations of an opioid, a benzodiazepine, and a muscle relaxant.
CVS also allegedly filled prescriptions from "pill mill" prescribers while ignoring red flags. Many of these claims were later reimbursed by federal programs.
"Not only does this settlement hold bad actors accountable for their fraudulent activities, but Americans are safer because of it," Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. said in a statement. "Today's settlement is a significant milestone in the Justice Department's efforts to combat the opioid epidemic by cracking down on pharmacies who unlawfully fulfill prescriptions for controlled substances."
According to the complaint, corporate policies kept pharmacists from warning one another a
