Washington wins $900 million verdict against Albertsons for fueling opioid crisis
News originally published by
Washington State Office of Attorney GeneralThe Attorney General’s Office prevailed on behalf of Washingtonians today in its case against Albertsons’ pharmacies after a King County Superior Court judge ruled the company failed to prevent the misuse of opioids, significantly contributing to the crisis that continues to kill thousands of Washingtonians every year.
Judge Janet Helson ruled Albertsons violated the law and failed to guard against the misuse and diversion of dangerous controlled substances, ordering a $900 million judgment, plus fees and costs, to address the consequences of the company’s unlawful actions.
The victory for the state concluded a multi-year case in which the AG’s office proved Albertsons repeatedly failed to adequately resolve “red flags of diversion,” warning signs that indicate a drug may be misused or diverted towards the illicit drug market.
Pharmacists have a responsibility under state and federal law to identify, investigate, and resolve these red flags, and then to document that process. Between 2006 and 2022, Albertsons dispensed more than 641 million opioid pills into Washington, the majority of which had red flags that weren’t appropriately investigated and resolved.
“This is a victory for the people of Washington. When giant corporations put profits above safety, they will be held accountable,” Attorney General Nick Brown said. “This verdict can’t undo the devastating harms of the opioid crisis, but it will provide desperately needed resources to support treatment and prevent future crises.”
The Crisis Continues
More than 26,000 Washingtonians have died from an opioid overdose since 1999, and research shows approximately 10 times that number were suffering from opioid use disorder in 2023 alone. Prescription opioids are highly addictive and, without adequate oversight by pharmacies like Albertsons, have caused devastating consequences for families and communities. People who become addicted are ultimately more likely to seek out cheaper and stronger opioid-class drugs like heroin or fentanyl through illicit means just to avoid the severe physical symptoms of withdrawal. Albertsons’ documents acknowledge that four out of every five new heroin users begin with prescription pills.
In the last three years, over 7,400 Washingtonians have died from opioid overdoses.
The economic costs associated with these harms are staggering: the U.S. Centers for Disease Control found that the opioid epidemic had a total economic burden nationally of over $1 trillion in 2017 alone. As is true around the country, Washington state and its local governments have borne the brunt of these costs and have struggled to keep up with its numerous associated harms.
Albertsons’ Culpability
Albertsons owns and operates more than 200 pharmacies in Washington under its Albertsons, Safeway, and Haggen banners. At trial, the AG’s office showed that between 2006 and 2022 these pharmacies unlawfully dispensed opioid orders without adequately investigating and documenting the resolution of red flags. In total, Albertsons pharmacies unlawfully filled red-flagged prescriptions for opioids more than 6.5 million times without documenting efforts to ensure that they were written for legitimate medical purposes despite the presence of such red flags. As a result, significant volumes of unlawful opioid prescriptions were filled and likely diverted into illicit use in Washington State.
During the trial, the AG’s office presented evidence that Albertsons’ corporate policies prioritized profits over patient and customer safety. Albertsons discouraged its pharmacists from identifying problematic over-prescribers and prescriptions, and did little to review its own data or industry data to identify them. In some cases, Albertsons did not allow pharmacists to turn away prescriptions prescribed from known “pill mill” prescribers, even though competing pharmacy chains had blocked them. Pharmacies received complaints about prescribers who overprescribed opioids, and Albertsons had access to data to identify risky stores, orders, prescribers, and prescriptions. Albertsons instead kept its stores and pharmacists siloed so they could not share information with each other. Albertsons also failed to closely track its controlled substances inventory for theft. In one case, a Safeway employee stole more than 70,000 opioid pills from a pharmacy in North Bend over the course of two years before finally being caught; other thefts included 12,000 pills from a Leavenworth pharmacy and 19,000 pills from an Olympia location.
Albertsons chronically understaffed stores, leading to overworked and overwhelmed pharmacy staff. During the trial, the state presented emails from Albertsons pharmacists asserting that, given how overworked they were, it was “impossible” to review the legitimacy of prescriptions before filling them. Albertsons even refused to let its pharmacy staff at some Washington stores take lunch breaks until recent years.
Albertsons’ undermanned pharmacists and pharmacy managers described to their superiors the physical and mental toll the work was taking on them, including complaints of exhaustion, vomiting “due to exhaustion, dehydration, and hunger,” of “breaking down in tears in the back,” and of feeling like they were “all stretched like rubber bands that are about to snap.” Under these conditions, as one Albertsons’ pharmacist warned the company, “mistakes can easily be made to put someone’s life at risk.”
Albertsons also continued to accept discount cards as payments for controlled substances well after other chains had abandoned the practice because the cards could be used by patients or prescribers to avoid scrutiny from insurers. Albertsons internal documents acknowledged that users were coming to their pharmacies as “refugees” from other chains that would not allow them to use discount cards.
During the trial, the state called dozens of witnesses who testified that Albertsons’ policies and practices contributed to the opioid crisis and to discuss the scope and impacts of the opioid epidemic in Washington. These included state employees and community members who have dedicated years of their lives working on the front lines of the crisis.
The AG’s office first filed a lawsuit against several prominent chain pharmacies in 2022. Albertsons was the sole remaining defendant in the case because all of the others either agreed to settle the claims against them very early in the case, or later declared bankruptcy.
Since the beginning of the opioid crisis, the AG’s office has recovered $2.17 billion in funding for state and local governments. This verdict will expand treatment and prevention resources throughout Washington.
-30-
Washington’s Attorney General serves the people and the state of Washington. As the state’s largest law firm, the Attorney General’s Office provides legal representation to every state agency, board, and commission in Washington. Additionally, the Office serves the people directly by enforcing consumer protection, civil rights, and environmental protection laws. The Office also prosecutes elder abuse, Medicaid fraud, and handles sexually violent predator cases in 38 of Washington’s 39 counties. Visit www.atg.wa.gov to learn more.
Media Contact:
Email: press@atg.wa.gov
Phone: (360) 753-2727
General contacts: Click here
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
