WASHINGTON, June 4 (UPI) -- U.S. pharmacy giant Walgreen Co. has agreed to a $35 million settlement over a sales fraud case, the Department of Justice said Wednesday.
Walgreen pharmacists allegedly switched patients to cheaper versions of Rantidine, Fluoxetine and Eldepryl to increase its Medicaid reimbursement profits, the DOJ said in a statement.
It is the third settlement the DOJ has reached over drug-switching practices.
"The United States will not tolerate pharmacies or any other health care providers that attempt to manipulate the Medicaid program at the taxpayers' expense," Gregory G. Katsas, acting assisting attorney general for the Civil Division, said in a statement.
Under the agreement, Walgreen will pay $18.6 million to the federal government, $16.4 million to forty-six states and Puerto Rico and about $5 million to whistle-blower pharmacist Bernard Listiza, who initiated the suit in 2003.
