Largest US Pharmacies Convicted in Opioid Crisis
A Federal Judge in Ohio Ordered Walmart, CVS and Walgreens to Pay more than $650 Million dollars toTtwo Counties in the State for Their Responsibility in the Opioid Crisis.
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LatinAmerican Post | Santiago Gómez Hernández
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Leer en español: Última Hora: Las farmacias más grandes de EE.UU. condenadas por crisis de opioides
Ohio federal judge Dan Polster found Walmart, CVS and Walgreens chains guilty of contributing to the opioid crisis in two counties in the state. Even though Walmart is considered a food retailer, it also sells medicine. In this way, these 3 giants will have to cancel, between the 3, a little more than 650 million dollars.
According to US justice, these 3 pharmacies played a crucial role in ignoring excessive and abusive consumption by customers, especially in Lake and Trumbull counties in the state of Ohio.
The money that the big companies will have to pay will go to finance prevention programs, education and to reimburse the expenses caused by the epidemic of deaths due to opioid overdoses, substances derived from opium that were sold legally as pain relievers, but that ended up generating addiction and a national problem.
Now, the eyes turn to the manufacturers and distributors, who, according to Judge Dan Polster, are the other responsible for this public health crisis.
For their part, the three large pharmacies have assured that they will appeal the ruling and insist that they only limited themselves to complying with the medical protocols that were in charge of prescribing the drugs.
