DOJ files complaint against CVS for facilitating unlawful sale of prescription opioids

The Justice Department unsealed a civil complaint Wednesday alleging CVS Pharmacy Inc. and various subsidiaries filled “unlawful” prescriptions in violation of the federal Controlled Substances Act.

The complaint also says CVS sought reimbursement from federal health care programs for such prescriptions in violation of the False Claims Act. CVS is the largest pharmacy chain in the U.S., where there are more than 9,000 pharmacies.

A representative of CVS said the company has cooperated with the DOJ’s investigation for more than four years, and strongly disagrees with the allegations and what it called the “false narrative” within the complaint.

Among the unlawful prescriptions that CVS allegedly filled from Oct. 17, 2013, to the present were for dangerous and excessive quantities of opioids, early fills of opioids, and “trinity” prescriptions — a dangerous combination of drugs made up of an opioid, a benzodiazepine and a muscle relaxant, according to prosecutors.