WASHINGTON (AP) — Walgreens has agreed to pay $106 million to settle lawsuits that alleged the pharmacy chain submitted false payment claims with government health care programs for prescriptions that were never dispensed.
The settlement announced on Friday resolves lawsuits filed in New Mexico, Texas and Florida on behalf of three people who had worked in Walgreens’ pharmacy operation. The lawsuits were filed under a whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act that lets private parties file case on behalf of the United States government and share in the recovery of money, the U.S. Justice Department said. The pharmacy chain was accused of submitting false payment claims to Medicare, Medicaid and other federal health care programs between 2009 and 2020 for prescriptions that were processed but never picked up.
Settlement documents say Walgreens cooperated in the investigation and has improved its electronic management system to prevent such problems from occurring again.
In a statement, Walgreens said that because of a software error, the chain inadvertently billed some government programs for a relatively small number of prescriptions that patients submitted but never picked up.
“We corrected the error, reported the issue to the government and voluntarily refunded all overpayments,” the statement by Walgreens said.
FILE - A Walgreens store in Bradenton, Fla., is shown on Feb. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
LONDON (AP) — Inflation in the U.K. held steady at an annual rate of 2.2% in August, with higher air fares offset by lower fuel costs and restaurant and hotel bills, official figures showed Wednesday.
The latest reading from the Office of National Statistics means inflation remains just above the Bank of England's target of 2%.
Last month, the central bank reduced its main interest rate by a quarter-point to 5%, the first cut since the onset of the pandemic.
Central banks around the world dramatically increased borrowing costs from near zero during the coronavirus pandemic when prices started to shoot up, first as a result of supply chain issues built up during the pandemic and then because of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine which pushed up energy costs.
Most economists think the bank will opt to keep borrowing costs unchanged after its latest policy meeting on Thursday. However, they think that the bank will most likely cut again in November, in the wake of the government's budget on Oct. 30.
The new Labour government has said that it needs to plug a 22 billion-pound ($29 billion) hole in the public finances and has indicated that it may have to raise taxes and lower spending, which would likely weigh on the near-term outlook for the British economy and put downward pressure on inflation.
“An interest rate cut on Thursday is looking unlikely with the majority of the Monetary Policy Committee likely to want to assess the impact of next month’s budget before deciding when to loosen policy again," said Suren Thiru, economics director at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
FILE - The Bank of England is pictured in London, on Aug. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, File)
