华盛顿讯——美国司法部官员周二透露，CVS制药公司及其多家子公司已同意支付3.15亿美元，以和解一起针对该公司的诉讼。该诉讼指控其非法开具大量并无医疗必要性的强致瘾性阿片类药物处方。
ALANNA DURKIN RICHER WASHINGTON — CVS Pharmacy Inc. and various subsidiaries have agreed to pay $315 million to resolve a Justice Department case alleging it unlawfully dispensed medically unnecessary prescriptions of highly addictive opioids, officials said Tuesday.
这起和解协议解决了2024年提起的一起诉讼。该诉讼指责这家医疗巨头大量开具阿片类药物及其他管制药物处方，“只为牟取自身利益而置公众健康与安全于不顾”。这是联邦政府为追究那些涉嫌助长美国药物成瘾与过量服用危机的企业责任而采取的最新举措。
The settlement resolves a lawsuit brought in 2024 that accused the healthcare giant of prescribing massive amounts of opioids and other controlled substances “to fuel its own profits at the expense of public health and safety.”It’s the latest effort by the federal government to hold accountable companies that officials have alleged helped fuel the U.S. addiction and overdose crisis.
美国司法部副部长斯坦利·伍德沃德在一份电子邮件声明中称：“今天的和解协议是司法部打击阿片类药物泛滥现象的重要里程碑，有助于遏制那些非法配发管制药物处方的药店。”
“Today’s settlement is a significant milestone in the Justice Department’s efforts to combat the opioid epidemic by cracking down on pharmacies who unlawfully fulfill prescriptions for controlled substances,” Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said in an emailed statement.
CVS在声明中表示，其药剂师均接受过“所有药物安全且规范使用”的相关培训，公司也实施了“业内一流”的管控措施，以协助药剂师“为患者做出最优决策”。该公司强调，自己坚决不认同诉讼中的各项指控，此次和解也并不意味着承认自身存在过错。
CVS said in a statement that its pharmacists were trained “in the safe and appropriate use of all medications” and that it had implemented “best-in-class” programs to help them “make the best decisions on behalf of patients.”The company said it strongly disagreed with the claims made in the lawsuit and that the settlement admits no wrongdoing.
2024年时，该公司曾指出，在配发阿片类药物处方方面，药剂师需遵循的标准“模糊不清、缺乏明确定义且时常变动”。
The company said in 2024 that pharmacists were being held to “vague, undefined, and ever-changing standards of practice” when it comes to filling prescription opioids.
这起诉讼由拜登政府时期提起，指控CVS违反《管制药物法》，违规配发大量高剂量强效阿片类药物处方，从而“助长了药物依赖与成瘾现象”。美国司法部还指出，CVS依据一些公认的“开药作坊”——即那些无合理医疗依据便随意开具药物处方的医疗机构——所开具的处方，配发了大量阿片类药物。
The lawsuit filed under President Joe Biden’s administration accused CVS of violating the Controlled Substances Act by filling illegitimate prescriptions for high doses of potent opioids that “fed dependence and addiction.”The Justice Department alleged it dispensed large quantities of opioids based on prescriptions from known “pill mills,” or providers that hand out prescriptions for drugs without a legitimate medical purpose.
诉状称，由于人手不足，加之公司实施的绩效考核及激励薪酬政策，导致药剂师们匆忙配药，甚至未核实处方是否合法。诉状指出，这些处方随后常被用于向医疗补助计划及其他联邦医疗项目申请报销。
It alleged that poor staffing levels coupled with performance metrics and incentive compensation policies implemented by the company led to pharmacists racing to fill prescriptions without confirming they were legitimate. The prescriptions were often billed to and reimbursed by Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs, the lawsuit says.
负责司法部民事事务的助理司法部长布雷特·舒梅特在声明中表示，根据和解协议，CVS还必须“采取额外防护措施，确保只有在符合医疗指征的情况下才发放阿片类药物及其他管制药物的处方”。
Under the settlement, CVS must also “implement additional safeguards to ensure that prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances are dispensed only when medically appropriate,” Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate, who leads the Justice Department’s Civil Division, said in a statement.
过去十年间，制药商、药品批发商、药店及其他相关企业已与美国各级政府达成了总额超过500亿美元的和解协议。这些资金大多用于应对这场药物滥用危机——该危机曾导致美国每年逾10万人死亡，不过近年来的死亡人数已显著下降。
Over the last decade, drugmakers, wholesalers, pharmacies and other companies have agreed to settlements with governments in the U.S. totaling over $50 billion. Most of the money is intended to go to address the crisis, which has been linked to more than 100,000 deaths in the U.S. some years, though the numbers have fallen sharply recently.
大部分和解协议及资金流向均为各州及地方政府，但美国政府也达成了多份协议，包括近两年内与沃尔格林和沃尔玛两家药店签订的和解协议。
Most of the settlements -- and dollars -- have been with state and local governments, but the U.S. has reached several deals, including in the last two years with the pharmacies Walgreens and Walmart.