Walmart has reached a settlement with the U.S. government over allegations that its pharmacies unlawfully dispensed opioid prescriptions. Financial terms of the agreement were not immediately disclosed.
Walmart has agreed to settle a U.S. government lawsuit accusing the retailer of unlawfully dispensing opioid prescriptions through its pharmacies, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Friday.
The Justice Department sued Walmart in 2020, alleging that the company repeatedly violated the federal Controlled Substances Act beginning in 2013. The government had said Walmart could face billions of dollars in civil penalties.
The case focused on allegations involving Walmart's pharmacy operations and the dispensing of controlled substances. The settlement resolves the federal government's lawsuit without the need for the case to proceed further.
Walmart has previously faced extensive litigation related to the U.S. opioid crisis. In 2022, the retailer agreed to pay $3.1 billion to settle thousands of claims brought by state and local governments over its role as a pharmacy and opioid distributor.
The latest settlement adds to the broader legal and regulatory scrutiny faced by pharmacies, drug distributors and manufacturers over opioid dispensing practices in the United States. The financial terms of the settlement were not immediately disclosed.
For Walmart, the resolution removes a significant federal legal dispute that had been pending since 2020, although the undisclosed terms mean the immediate financial impact cannot yet be assessed.
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