Walmart lawsuit against U.S. over opioids is dismissed

Walmart says it will appeal the dismissal of its lawsuit against the U.S. government seeking clarity about the obligations of its pharmacies and pharmacists for opioid prescriptions. U.S. District Judge Sean Jordan dismissed the preemptive suit on February 4, saying the government had not waived its sovereign immunity from the company’s “sweeping” challenge to the Department of Justice and DEA’s enforcement of laws regarding opioid prescriptions by pharmacies and pharmacists. The government sued Walmart in late December, asserting its network of pharmacies was unable to adequately detect and report suspicious opioid prescriptions and that Walmart filled thousands of invalid prescriptions. In its October 22 lawsuit, Walmart had asserted the government’s lax and confusing oversight forced pharmacists to choose between filling prescriptions and risking criminal or civil liability, or refusing prescriptions and then having to face patients, doctors, and state medical boards. “Our pharmacists and patients deserve better than the current patchwork of inconsistent, conflicting and contradictory demands from federal and state regulators,” Walmart said in announcing the planned appeal.