Who let DANGEROUS opioids fall into the wrong hands? [Feds point the finger]
Friend, for the last year we’ve been DISTRACTED by a global pandemic.
But we can’t afford to IGNORE other issues that are THREATENING our health…
Even if the media has gone SILENT on them.
In December, you may have missed a story about ANOTHER public health emergency – one that’s impacting seniors at a STARTLING rate.
It’s a health issue that’s GROWN to epidemic proportions.
But it COULD’VE stayed totally within our control — were it not for a league of co-conspirators that includes Big Pharma, and maybe even your doc.
Now, the latest news shows how one of our nation’s most TRUSTED retailers may have been “in” on it…
And made the situation WORSE… by turning a blind eye.
A major pharmacy FAIL
The opioid epidemic started with a “bait and switch.”
Pharma reps PROMISED docs that these powerful painkillers were perfectly SAFE… and not nearly as ADDICTIVE as they truly ARE.
So, docs made that SAME promise to their patients… and prescribed them freely.
But when the situation went sideways… and people started to get HOOKED… some docs KEPT supplying the drugs…
Even LONG after folks needed them to kill the pain (like after a surgical procedure).
Unfortunately, the buck doesn’t stop there…
Because opioid-addicted patients wouldn’t be able to get the drugs they SHOULDN’T be taking… unless a pharmacy filled ALL prescriptions for them…
Including the ones that they KNEW seemed “suspicious” or “questionable.”
And that’s exactly what the Department of Justice and DEA are ACCUSING Walmart of.
The result of a multi-year investigation by the Prescription Interdiction & Litigation Task Force, a 160-page civil complaint claims that the retailer IGNORED warnings from its staff members about prescriptions that just didn’t seem right.
And that’s a VIOLATION of the Controlled Substances Act.
The theory is that Walmart… one of our nation’s largest pharmacy chains… should have REFUSED to fill THOUSANDS of prescriptions for opioids.
But when it faced “glaringly obvious red flags”… it looked the other way.
I’m talking about “shady” docs… illegitimate scripts… wildly inappropriate doses… patients acting like junkies at the pharmacy counter… and more.
Now, Walmart is a little different than your local pharmacy… or even one of the big drug store chains in your neighborhood…
Because it ALSO acts as a wholesaler of pills that it supplies to its OWN pharmacies.
So, if the retailer is found GUILTY of fueling the opioid crisis… its culpability could be two-fold.
Walmart has already tried PASSING THE BUCK…
Claiming that its pharmacists shouldn’t be BLAMED for NOT second-guessing docs who should’ve been subject to a federal CRACKDOWN.
But how many patients RELY on their local pharmacist for medication advice… as much as if not more than their own doc?
If you ask me, your pharmacist is part of a CRUCIAL system of checks and balances…
One that could alert you to DANGEROUS drug interactions… and prepare you for any side effects you may experience.
And with any pharmaceutical Rx, you can bet on there being SOME kind of side effect… even if your doc FAILED to mention it!
That means if they see you getting SWEPT UP in a tsunami of controlled substances that are turning innocent patients into DOPERS…
They ABSOLUTELY have the responsibility to report it… step in… and STOP it.
Now, these charges aren’t criminal… YET. But the DOJ hasn’t ruled out filing a criminal complaint in the future.
I’ll be sure to keep you updated on the status of BOTH right here.
To stopping the cycle of abuse,
Melissa Young
P.S. Last fall, I shared with you how one drugmaker FESSED UP… and pled GUILTY for its role in the opioid crisis, including making FALSE claims.
Missed my email? You can find it right here in the eAlert archives.
