Good Lifestyle

Large retailers are familiar with the legislator, because disputes roughly accompany the territory. Companies like Walmart, CVS and Walgreens are often struck by prosecution, ranging frommarketing problems andfalse price to more serious allegations concerning a lack ofdrug warnings andfinancial fraud. But now this trio of retailers has been slapped with a heavy fine totaling more than $ 650 million. Read more to find out why companies are now forced to pay hundreds of millions of dollars.

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Contrary to what pharmaceutical companies declared in the 1990s, opioid pain relievers were very addictive drugs, which led to catastrophic improper use. The surprise combined with the abuse potential of these pills led to the epidemic of opioids, which has since cost the life of almost500,000 Americans Between 1999 and 2019, according to the data from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This amazing number was counted during three "waves", which started in the 1990s when the opioids were too prescribed and were followed by a second wave in 2010, when the heroine - a semi -synthetic opioid - is contributed to a large and rapid and rapid increase in death by overdose. In 2013, the third wave began because death by overdose was traced to synthetic opioids "involving fentanyl manufactured illicit".

The CDC estimates that 136 people die from an opioid overdose every day, and several agencies are currently working to fight against the crisis. As opioids are controlled substances that require a prescription, pharmacies are responsible for providing these drugs, and a new decision holds three of the largest - CVS, Walgreens and Walmart - responsible for the role they would have played.

August 17, American district judgeDan Polster In Cleveland, judged that the three pharmacy channels had to pay $ 650.6 million in damageTwo Ohio counties,,The Washington Post reported. AboveNext 15 years, Lake County will receive $ 306.2 million and Trumbull County will receive $ 344.4 million by CNN.

According to the decision, CVS, Walmart and Walgreens arepartially guilty Because they had no "effective checks and procedures" to prevent the resale and abuse of these pills, which makes them partially blame for the resulting damage, byThe Washington Post. The decision follows one November 2021Jury decision, which found that the three pharmacies played a role in the crisis in the counties of the lake and Trumbull.

"Today marks the start of a new day in our fight to end the epidemic of opioids", "John Hamercheck, Said the County Commissioner of Lake, in a statement afterThe decision was announced, according to the Associated Press.

While the experts estimated that it will cost $ 3.3 billion for the counties of Lake and Trumbull to recover from their losses, the counties intend to give them the money attributed to the fight against the crisis, reported CNN.

AccordingThe Washington Post, the decision also requires that CVS, Walmart and Walgreens adopt precautionary measures, including training staff on how to properly provide controlled substances such as opioids, the establishment of a hotline to report "inappropriate sales "And the hiring of a compliance agent" controlled-subsitance. "

According to Axios, this decision could create a precedent for future prosecution, because it is the first to demand that the pharmacy chains pay a fixed amount linked to their role in the epidemic of opioids.

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Walmart has published a formal declarationtackle, saying that the applicant's lawyers were "in search of deep pockets" when the trial was submitted and that the trial "was riddled with remarkable legal and factual errors". He plans to appeal.

The retailer also declared that the "real causes" of the crisis understand "the doctors of the pill factory, illegal drugs and sleeping regulators in the switch". Walmart has added that the law does not intend to pharmacists of "doctors of the second guess", alleging that "interferes with the doctor-patient relationship", according to federal regulators and the health of states.

In a declaration atThe Washington Post, CVS said the decision was "poor application of the public law on nuisance".AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB

"We are strongly disagreed with the court's decision concerning the county reduction plan, as well as the underlying verdict last fall," said CVS. "Pharmacists fulfill legal prescriptions written by doctors licenses at the DEA which prescribe legal substances approved by the FDA to treat real patients in need."

Walgreens was also tried in aopioid trial In San Francisco and in May, the pharmacy chain reached a payment of $ 620 with theFlorida State.

In a declaration atBetter life, Director of World Business Communications in WalgreensScott Goldberg said: "We are disappointed with this result. The facts and the law did not support the jury's verdict last fall, and they do not support the court's decision now. The court made important legal errors for Allowing the case to appear before a jury on an imperfect legal theory which is incompatible with the law of Ohio and has aggravated these errors to achieve its decision concerning damage. Food this crisis. The attempt of the complainants of Resolving the opioid crisis with an unprecedented expansion of the public law on nuisances is wrong and unbearable. We are impatiently awaiting the opportunity to resolve these questions on appeal. "

CVS confirmed to CNN that he also planned to appeal.Better lifecontacted the company to comment, but has not yet heard.