US-based drug store chain Walgreens has agreed to reimburse a monetary penalty of $80m to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to settle the charges of violating federal regulations governing the distribution of prescription painkillers.
The settlement also resolves similar open civil investigations against Walgreens Jupiter Distribution Center and six Walgreens retail pharmacies (together known as "Registrants") in Florida, Colorado, Michigan and Eastern District of New York.
The regulator claimed that the Registrants carelessly allowed controlled substances listed in Schedules II - V of the Act, including oxycodone and other prescription pain killers, to be diverted for abuse and illegal black market sales.
DEA special agent in charge Mark Trouville said that the national pharmaceutical chains will be held accountable when they violate the law and threaten public health and safety.
US Attorney Wifredo A Ferrer said that prescription drug abuse is a terrific problem in Florida and across the country and people are dying from prescription drug overdoses.
"For this reason, we cannot allow pharmacies to circumvent their regulatory record-keeping and dispensing obligations," Ferrer added.
Besides imposing a $80m civil penalty for the violations, the regulator has restricted Registrants from distributing or dispensing controlled substances listed in Schedules II - V for two years, ending in 2014.
Walgreens has admitted that it failed to maintain its obligations and agreed to form a department of pharmaceutical integrity to ensure regulatory compliance and prevent the diversion of controlled substances.
