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October 23, 2020

Walmart claims its pharmacists blameless in opioid crisis

By Clare Duffy, CNN Business

Walmart on Thursday filed a lawsuit against the federal government asking a court to clarify that the company and its pharmacists were not responsible for the distribution of improper opioid prescriptions.

The retailer said the suit is in response to threats of legal action by the Department of Justice and Drug Enforcement Agency to hold Walmart pharmacists responsible, in part, for the opioid crisis, according to a press release from Walmart. 

A spokesperson for the DEA said the agency does not comment on ongoing litigation, and the DOJ did not immediately return a request for comment.

The complaint, filed in US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, could set up yet another legal battle involving a major American corporation over who is responsible for the opioid epidemic that has led to hundreds of thousands of overdose deaths in recent years. 

Walmart is the country's largest retailer, and it operates more than 5,000 in-store pharmacies in the United States.
 

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