Walmart pays $50 million to settle US opioid lawsuit
What's new: The deal adds tighter pharmacist oversight and a hotline to report suspected illegal opioid dispensing.
Walmart agreed to pay $50 million to resolve a US government lawsuit that accused the retailer of helping fuel the opioid epidemic through unlawful pharmacy dispensing. The Justice Department had sought billions in civil penalties when it sued in 2020, but Walmart did not admit liability and called the payment immaterial in a regulatory filing. The settlement also requires stronger oversight of pharmacists and a hotline for employees and patients to report suspected illegal dispensing. The case, filed in federal court in Wilmington, Delaware, had been narrowed in 2024 after some claims were dismissed. Walmart previously agreed in 2022 to pay $3.1 billion to settle opioid claims brought by state and local governments.