Walmart to Pay $50 Million to Settle Allegations of Illegally Filling Invalid Opioid Prescriptions

By Elias Schisgall

Walmart agreed to pay $50 million to resolve allegations that its pharmacies illegally filled thousands of prescriptions for opioids that were invalid.

The settlement resolves allegations initially made in 2020 that Walmart knowingly filled invalid prescriptions since 2013 in violation of the Controlled Substances Act, the Justice Department said Friday.

The company also agreed as part of the settlement to a memorandum of agreement with the Drug Enforcement Administration requiring it to monitor pharmacies' dispensing patterns to address illegal dispensing, establish a process to evaluate suspicious prescribers, and launch a hotline for employees or patients to report suspected violations of the CSA.

Government prosecutors had alleged that Walmart's corporate compliance team knowingly filled invalid prescriptions for opioids and other substances from prescribers operating as "pill mills," and did not adequately analyze thousands of "refusal-to-fill" forms filed by its own pharmacists.

The settlement does not contain any determination of liability, the DOJ said. Walmart did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"Congress enacted laws to promote responsibility and accountability for companies who dispense controlled substances to protect Americans," associate attorney general Stanley Woodward said. "This Department will never shy away from vigorously enforcing pharmacies' obligations to comply with those protections, ensuring that potential profits never justify aiding our Nation's opioid epidemic."

Write to Elias Schisgall at elias.schisgall@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 28, 2026 18:37 ET (22:37 GMT)