Walmart Sues Justice Department, DEA In Opioid Case

(RTTNews) - Walmart (WMT) Thursday announced that it has sued the U.S. Department of Justice and the Drug Enforcement Administration, asking a federal court to clarify the roles and responsibilities of pharmacists and pharmacies under the Controlled Substances Act.

In a statement, the company said, "Walmart and our pharmacists are committed to helping address the opioid crisis that has affected so many. We are proud of our pharmacists, who help patients understand the risks about opioid prescriptions, and who have refused to fill hundreds of thousands of opioid prescriptions they thought could be problematic. With the help of a team of investigators and experts, Walmart has also blocked thousands of questionable doctors from having their opioid prescriptions filled by any of our pharmacists, and we frequently assist law enforcement in bringing bad doctors to justice."

The suit names the department and Attorney General William Barr as defendants, as well as the DEA and its acting administrator, Timothy Shea.

The lawsuit seeks a declaration from a federal judge that the government has no lawful basis for seeking civil damages from the company based on claims pharmacists filled valid prescriptions that they should have known raised red flags.