Walmart sues US in pre-emptive strike in opioid abuse battle

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart is suing the U.S. government in a pre-emptive strike in the battle over its responsibility in the opioid abuse crisis.

The government is expected to take civil action against the world’s largest retailer, seeking big financial penalties, for the role its pharmacies may have played in the crisis by filling opioid prescriptions.

But on Thursday, Walmart filed a lawsuit saying that the Justice Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration are blaming the company for the government’s own lack of regulatory and enforcement policies to stem the crisis.

Walmart says it is seeking a declaration from a federal judge that the government has no lawful basis for seeking civil damages from the company. It is also seeking to clarify its legal rights and duties under the Controlled Substance Act.

-snip-

By ANNE D'INNOCENZIO
9 minutes ago


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/lawsuits-opioids-e9e7b85513ae75ce421d70a21c4dd8f7

[Sherman A1]

1. Well, this will be interesting

to watch which direction this suit, counter-suit goes.

[FLicuMD]

6. Did not see this coming

Do you suppose that those weasels are thinking the best defense is a good offense. I cannot stand Walmart -- they should be held criminally liable and shut down. They are at the least criminally stupid

[Sherman A1]

7. I'm no fan of Walmart or their business model

But this will be an interesting case to follow as it does appear they are trying with this action to disrupt any grounds for a liability case brought against them. Just reading what I have here, it seems that they may have some valid points as government regulators were probably asleep at the switch.

Walmart bears some of the blame, but perhaps not all of it.

[Codeine]

2. Without toothless pillheads

Walmart doesn’t have a customer base.

[Wellstone ruled]

3. Not surprised one bit.

Walmart is the number one distributor of Oxy. Seems to me a Las Vegas Pharmacy was the single largest dispensary .

[TexasBushwhacker]

4. Well, in a lot of towns, Walmart is the ONLY pharmacy n/t

[Wellstone ruled]

5. There was a break down of who what and where

the largest dispensary operations were. And yes,Walmart is the only dispensary in many towns. But,in sheer volume. The Store on Boulder Hwy as well as one in the Midwest were heads and shoulders above all others.