Walgreens has settled False Claims Act cases initiated by two whistleblowers alleging that the company failed to comply with Medi-Cal requirements for prescription drugs.  Under Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program, pharmacies are required to confirm that certain drugs were prescribed for approved purposes and that certain criteria are met.  Walgreens allegedly failed to review the criteria for prescriptions it filled and, in some cases, filled prescriptions even when it knew that criteria was not met.

Walgreens will pay $9.86 million and the whistleblowers will receive $2.3 million as an award for bringing the alleged fraud to light.

Read the DOJ press release here.