Walgreens Boots Alliance has agreed to pay $269.2 million to settle two healthcare fraud lawsuits, alleging the company overbilled government payers, according to the Department of Justice.
Under the first settlement, Walgreens will pay $209.2 million to resolve allegations that it improperly billed Medicare and other federal healthcare programs for hundreds of thousands of insulin pens it dispensed to beneficiaries who did not need them.
The second settlement requires Walgreens to pay $60 million to resolve allegations it overbilled Medicaid by failing to charge Medicaid the lower drug prices it offered the public through a discount program.
In addition to the monetary settlements, Walgreens entered into a corporate integrity agreement with HHS' Office of Inspector General.
Regarding the settlements, Walgreens issued the following statement:
"Walgreens is pleased to have resolved these matters with the Department of Justice. The company fully cooperated with the government and has admitted no wrongdoing. Walgreens is a company of pharmacists living and working in the communities we serve, and we have always taken the safety and reliability of the medicines our patients need very seriously. We are resolving these matters because we believe it is in the best interest of our customers, patients and other stakeholders to move forward."
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