CVS Pharmacy Settlement Results in $650K Payment, Improved Oversight

CVS has agreed to pay $650,000 and promised to improve the quality of oversight to settle claims brought by the state of New Jersey, which alleged that the pharmacy repeatedly gave patients the wrong drugs, sometimes placing them in danger. 

The allegations stem from an investigation by the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, which announced the agreement in a press release on February 25.

According to a report by the agency, dozens of prescription errors were made at five CVS pharmacy locations in New Jersey, including Budd Lake, Chatham, Cherry Hill, Rahway, and Scotch Plains.

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A prescription error at a Chatham CVS led to the initial investigation. According to the state’s review, the CVS pharmacy at 471 Main Street in Chatham distributed 15 prescription bottles of fluoride pills for children that also included Tamoxifen, a breast cancer drug that can cause cognitive problems and memory loss. The medication mistakes occurred between December 20, 2011 and February 20, 2012.

“The Division of Consumer Affairs launched an immediate inquiry to ascertain the facts, and potential harm to consumers, of a pill dispensing error at the CVS in Chatham – and soon learned about similar incidents at a total of five CVS pharmacies across New Jersey, all within a short span of time,” Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa said in the press release. “In order to protect the public and prevent these errors from happening again, the Division pushed CVS to work with us on an effective solution.”

Other New Jersey CVS drug mix-ups included putting pills for the high blood pressure drug metoprolol into bottles with Risperdal, an antipsychotic; and giving a patient the cholesterol drug pravastatin when they were supposed to receive the diabetes drug metaformin.

In addition to agreeing to pay $650,000, CVS has promised to retrain staff at all of its New Jersey pharmacies, create new procedures for using automated filling machines to fill prescriptions and put into place other new quality assurance measures.

The company’s $650,000 will fund a public awareness campaign in New Jersey on the dangers of prescription drug abuse and the proper use of prescription drugs, and repays the state the cost of the investigation.

2 Comments

  • ChiaraMay 22, 2023 at 9:40 pm

    What good did the 650k for oversight do when as of today there still withholding another medication and charging the insurance company for the medication and trying to substitute it with a medication that can my daughter an adverse effect and she cannot take because it interacts with the medications shes on and its deadly.YOU GAVE THEM CVS TILL JUNE 23 OF 2023 TO FIX THE PROBLEM WELL ITS LIKE YOU[Show More]What good did the 650k for oversight do when as of today there still withholding another medication and charging the insurance company for the medication and trying to substitute it with a medication that can my daughter an adverse effect and she cannot take because it interacts with the medications shes on and its deadly.YOU GAVE THEM CVS TILL JUNE 23 OF 2023 TO FIX THE PROBLEM WELL ITS LIKE YOU GOT WHAT YOU WANT AND ARE NOT FIXING THE PROBLEM YOUR HELPING YOURSELF.I HAVE 1 DAY OR SHE TO BE HOSPITALIZED AND SUPERVISED AND YOUR PLAYING WITH PEOPLES LIVES.

  • chiaraApril 23, 2023 at 8:23 pm

    My Issue is that I have been traumatized by CVS.My daughter takes 30 pills a day as is alive today because of these medications but as of lately a few months or longer they have been not able to get her meds,say they need prior authorization when done by the doctors at least three times where oops where sorry it was authorized.Then giving me labels written incorrectly,over billing medicaid by givi[Show More]My Issue is that I have been traumatized by CVS.My daughter takes 30 pills a day as is alive today because of these medications but as of lately a few months or longer they have been not able to get her meds,say they need prior authorization when done by the doctors at least three times where oops where sorry it was authorized.Then giving me labels written incorrectly,over billing medicaid by giving 2 tablets 1x a day for 30 days with only 8 tablets for 4 days with 27 refills charging 112.$ so figure it out.They dont have the medication in stock although using the same cvs for 20 years and she is on ready fill THEY ABSOLUTELY ARE ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A PERSON AND A DISABLED PERSON LIFE IT IS LIFE OR DEATH SHE IS EPILEPTIC AND ASTHMATIC.THERE MORE TO THIS STORY.

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