Walgreens, the well-known retail pharmacy chain, has agreed to a hefty $97.8 million settlement after allegations surfaced that it billed government health care programs for prescriptions that patients never picked up. The company, headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, operates one of the largest pharmacy chains in the United States and has found itself under scrutiny after two qui tam lawsuits brought the issues to light. Both the Turck Civil Action and the Jacob Civil Action alleged wrongdoing by Walgreens that took place from 2009 to 2020, where the company was accused of unlawfully billing Medicare, Medicaid, and other government healthcare programs, as reported by the Hawai‘i Department of the Attorney General.
The allegations suggest a significant breach of trust, as Walgreens reportedly received tens of millions in payments for drugs that were never actually provided to beneficiaries. In response to the suits, Walgreens has since updated its billing systems to prevent a repetition of these unlawful billing practices. The settlement includes Hawai‘i, which joined 49 other attorneys general in the collective legal action. According to the breakdown of the settlement, Hawai‘i's share amounts to just $3,524.83 from the global amount, which intends to recover funds for all Medicaid programs.
This case was a collaborative effort involving the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units (NAMFCU) Team, working closely with the U.S. Department of Justice and United States Attorney’s Offices in Texas and Florida. The team was composed of representatives from the Office of the Attorney General in states like Wisconsin, California, Texas, Maine, Oregon, and Massachusetts. The proactive involvement of these officials underscores the dedication to rooting out healthcare fraud across the board.
For Hawai‘i, Landon M.M. Murata, Director of the state’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU), and Judy Mohr Peterson, Ph.D., Med-QUEST Division Administrator, spearheaded the settlement agreement on behalf of the state. Murata emphasized the importance of the achievement: "This is a significant win in the fight against healthcare fraud in our country. We appreciate all the hard work and dedication of our federal and state partners who made this settlement possible. It is important that remain vigilant to ensure that taxpayer dollars dedicated to supporting our critical healthcare programs like Medicaid, are not being squandered," according to the Hawai‘i Department of the Attorney General statement.
