Walgreens Pharmacists Told To Fib To Customers To Sell Drug Hikes Says Whistleblower Lawsuit

Walgreens (WAG) recommended that its pharmacists use one liners on their customers to convince them that its illegal swicthing of their medications to a more expensive brand was to their advatnage because the capsules were easier to swallow. This scam was revealed in a now unsealed whistleblower lawsuit. Walgreens settled the allegations for $35 million. In the new lawsuit against capsule maker Par Pharmaceuticals and its suppliers, it is revealed that when explaining why their prescriptions were being switched without their permission to a more expensive version of the drug Walgreens told the pharmacists to say the medication was the same. However, by switching to gelcaps the price of Zantac, for example, rose from $5.35 to $71.45 repeaing Walgreens an extra $75 million in annual profits. They then cococted the story that they were easier to swallow as the reason for the change.