Walgreens has agreed to pay a record-breaking $80 million penalty to resolve a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration investigation into the company's dispensing practices in Florida, including at an Oviedo pharmacy. The DEA in September banned a Walgreens distribution center in Jupiter from dispensing controlled substances to its pharmacies in Florida and the East Coast, saying it was the single-largest distributor of oxycodone in the state. The top six Walgreens pharmacies in Florida were also targeted in the probe, including the store on Lockwood Boulevard. In addition to the penalty, the DEA also said in its settlement made public Tuesday that the Walgreens distribution center and six stores are banned from dispensing Schedule II through Schedule V drugs until 2014, which include the painkillers OxyContin, Percocet and Vicodin, and the sedative Xanax. "National pharmaceutical chains are not exempt from following the law," said DEA Special Agent in Charge Mark R. Trouville in a prepared statement. "This settlement sends out a clear message that all DEA registrants will be held accountable when they violate the law and threaten public health and safety," he said. "The DEA will continue its efforts to work with our registrants and our law enforcement partners to combat … Continue reading →

Walgreens has agreed to pay a record-breaking $80 million penalty to resolve a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration investigation into the company's dispensing practices in Florida, including at an Oviedo pharmacy. The DEA in September banned a Walgreens distribution center in Jupiter from dispensing controlled substances to its pharmacies in Florida and the East Coast, saying it was the single-largest distributor of oxycodone in the state. The top six Walgreens pharmacies in Florida were also targeted in the probe, including the store on Lockwood Boulevard. In addition to the penalty, the DEA also said in its settlement made public Tuesday that the Walgreens distribution center and six stores are banned from dispensing Schedule II through Schedule V drugs until 2014, which include the painkillers OxyContin, Percocet and Vicodin, and the sedative Xanax. "National pharmaceutical chains are not exempt from following the law," said DEA Special Agent in Charge Mark R. Trouville in a prepared statement. "This settlement sends out a clear message that all DEA registrants will be held accountable when they violate the law and threaten public health and safety," he said. "The DEA will continue its efforts to work with our registrants and our law enforcement partners to combat … Continue reading →