Walgreens, Florida settle opioid costs lawsuit for $683M

By CURT ANDERSON
Associated Press

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The Walgreens pharmacy chain has reached a $683 million settlement with the state of Florida in a lawsuit accusing the company of improperly dispensing millions of painkillers that contributed to the opioid crisis. State Attorney General Ashley Moody said Thursday the deal was struck after four weeks of government evidence was presented at trial. Walgreens was the 12th and final defendant to settle with Florida, which will bring in more than $3 billion for the state to tackle opioid addiction and overdoses. The Florida case hinged on accusations that Walgreens dispensed more than 4.3 billion total opioid pills from May 2006 to June 2021 with half containing red flags for abuse, fraud and addiction.