A Florida judge ruled in favor of CVS, Walgreens and Walmart in a lawsuit brought by 16 hospitals accusing the pharmacy retailers of flooding the state with opioids.
The hospitals, including Broward Health, Tampa General Hospital and Good Samaritan Medical Center, sued in 2019 alleging the companies violated the Federal Controlled Substances Act and Florida’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute by working together to illegally flood Florida communities with opioids.
The hospitals accused the companies of working to improperly distribute and dispense the drugs, which contributed to the statewide spike in opioid abuse. The result, the hospitals argued, has been widespread addiction and patient harm while also raising costs for hospitals due to injuries and unreimbursed care. The hospitals sought damages for alleged underpayment of opioid-related patient visits.
In the lawsuit, the 16 hospitals alleged they incurred $528.3 million in unpaid bills for treating opioid-related injuries and another $1.5 billion for providing broader medical care to patients who used opioids.
Between 2006 and 2018, the pharmacies named in the lawsuit dispensed more than 21 billion opioid pills in 15 Florida counties served by the hospitals — nearly 200 pills a year for every resident, according to the complaint, Reuters reported.
Broward County Chief Judge Carol-Lisa Phillips entered a direct verdict ruling in favor of the pharmacies, stating that “no reasonable jury” would rule in favor of the hospitals because the claims of racketeering and conspiracy required them to show they had been directly harmed by the pharmacy chains’ conduct. The hospitals could not recover damages under state racketeering law because their injuries were indirect, Phillips said in her ruling.
A trial began in Broward County Circuit Court in September 2025 and went to a jury in late 2025, but Phillips ultimately declared a mistrial when the jurors deadlocked and could not reach a verdict, Reuters reported.
A spokesperson for CVS Health said in a statement to Fierce Healthcare, “We’re pleased to prevail in this case. The Court rejected this meritless claim and granted our motion for a directed verdict.”
In a statement, a Walmart spokesperson said, “The Court’s decision confirms what we have said from the beginning; we aren’t responsible for causing any injuries to Florida hospitals, and the evidence does not support the claims. Walmart has always been, and remains, committed to responsibly serving our customers and communities with integrity.”
Walgreens declined to comment on the court ruling.
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