CVS, Walmart, Walgreens to pay $13.8B to settle US opioid claims

CVS and Walgreens, the nation’s largest pharmaceutical chains, have agreed to pay about $5 billion and $5.7 billion respectively in settlements to US states, cities and tribes over the opioid epidemic. Walmart also reportedly has agreed to a settlement of about $3.1 billion.

The deals totaling $13.8 billion would end thousands of lawsuits filed against pharmaceutical companies for filling prescriptions that they should have flagged as inappropriate. The settlements come as the last multibillion-dollar deals by drug distributors with the government for their role in the opioid crisis, which has been linked to over 500,000 deaths in the US over the last two decades. 

These deals would bring the total value of all the settlements over the epidemic to more than $50 billion, with most of it required to be used by state and local governments to combat opioids.  

“It’s one more culprit of the overdose crisis that is having to pay their dues,” said Courtney Gary-Allen, organizing director of the Maine Recovery Advocacy Project. She is a member of a council that will help determine how Maine uses its opioid settlement funds and said that Average Americans have been paying the price for a long time.

Gary-Allen said that Maine needs more beds for medical detox and treatment. 

The lawsuits, filed by local governments and Native American tribes, will be dissolved after settlements. CVS is required to pay $4.9 billion to local governments and about $130 million to Native American tribes over a decade, while Walgreens is supposed to pay $4.8 billion to governments and $155 million to tribes over the next 15 years. Walmart has agreed to pay $3.1 billion, mostly upfront. The exact amount will depend on how many governments join the deals.

“This settlement framework will allow us to keep our focus on the health and wellbeing of our customers and patients, while making positive contributions to address the opioid crisis,” said Walgreens representatives in a statement released by the company. “This allows our pharmacists to continue playing a critical role in providing education and resources to help combat opioid misuse and abuse.” 

Opioid deaths have skyrocketed in the last few years, with the number hitting around 80,000 a year, most of which are attributed to fentanyl, the illicitly produced, lab-made version of the drug. 

Majority of the opioid overdose deaths in the United States initially involved prescription drugs. As governments, doctors, and companies synergized to prevent addicts from obtaining and abusing the drug, the latter turned to heroin, a more lethal drug.  

“We are committed to working with states, municipalities and tribes, and will continue our own important initiatives to help reduce the illegitimate use of prescription opioids,” said Thomas Moriarty, the chief policy officer and general counsel at CVS Health in a statement. 

However, neither of the companies is admitting wrongdoing.   

Walmart declined to comment on the matter.

“In addition to payments totaling billions of dollars, these companies have committed to making significant improvements to their dispensing practices to help reduce addiction moving forward,” lawyers representing local governments said in a statement. 

With the completion of these settlements, many smaller players will become defendants in the lawsuits, a move by the federal government to fight the crisis.

“The companies that helped to create and fuel this crisis must commit to changing their business practices, and to providing the resources needed for treatment, prevention and recovery,” said William Tong, the Attorney General of Connecticut. “One by one, we are holding every player in the addiction industry accountable for the millions of lives lost or devastated by the opioid epidemic.” 

Some previous opioid settlements this year include a combined settlement of $21 billion by distributors AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, and McKesson. Another earlier settlement includes a $5 billion deal by the drug manufacturer Johnson & Johnson. Purdue Pharma has proposed a settlement of about $6 billion in cash, plus the value of the company – funds that were to be used to incorporate a new entity aimed at combating the epidemic, but the motion has been put on hold by a court.