DELAWARE — The settlement resolves alleged violations of the Controlled Substances Act dating from June 2013. Walmart settled the case without admitting liability.

Walmart signed a memorandum of agreement with the DEA. Under the agreement, Walmart must establish a hotline for employees and patients to report suspected illegal dispensing. Under the agreement, Walmart must monitor pharmacy dispensing patterns. Under the agreement, Walmart must create a process for reviewing prescribers suspected of unlawful prescribing.

"Filling illegitimate opioid prescriptions puts patients and communities at risk and undermines the safeguards designed to prevent the diversion and misuse of potentially addictive medications," DEA assistant administrator Cheri Oz said. "This settlement addresses past conduct while establishing clear compliance obligations designed to strengthen safeguards and help prevent these failures from happening again."

Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said today’s settlement proves this department is committed to putting Americans’ flourishing first. He said Congress enacted laws to promote responsibility and accountability for companies who dispense controlled substances to protect Americans, and that this department will never shy away from vigorously enforcing pharmacies’ obligations to comply with those protections, ensuring that potential profits never justify aiding our nation’s opioid epidemic. A Walmart spokesperson said the company is pleased to resolve this matter and will continue supporting the exceptional work its pharmacists do every day to provide outstanding patient care.

Walmart accrued an "immaterial" amount for the settlement as of July 31, 2026. Walmart reported second-quarter net sales of $186.10 billion, up 5.9% year on year. Walmart raised its fiscal 2027 guidance.

Walmart's net income totaled $11.7 billion in the six months ending on July 31. Walmart shares closed up 46 cents at $103.09.

Why It Matters

This settlement follows a 2022 agreement in which Walmart paid $3.1 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits by state and local governments over the role of its pharmacies in the opioid crisis. Walmart's website says it has nearly 4,600 pharmacies nationwide.

Kroger agreed in 2023 to pay $1.2 billion to states and local governments over its handling of prescriptions. Research titled Walmart and Walmart Foundation awards $3.5 million for BIPOC community programs was published in 2022 in Corporate Philanthropy Report. Research titled "Walmart awards $5 million for Smithsonian exhibit" was published in 2022 in Corporate Philanthropy Report.

Timeline

On November 6, 2015, pro se plaintiff Eshed Alston filed a complaint in the Superior Court of the State of Delaware in and for Kent County against defendants including the Administrative Offices of the Delaware Courts. The Department of Justice filed a complaint against Walmart in December 2020 in the US District Court for the District of Delaware. The Department of Justice amended the complaint in 2022. In 2022, Walmart agreed to pay $3.1 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits by state and local governments over the role of its pharmacies in the opioid crisis.

In March 2024, US District Judge Colm Connolly narrowed the Walmart case, dismissing claims that Walmart failed to report suspicious prescriptions to the US Drug Enforcement Administration and that Walmart pharmacists failed to document red flags associated with prescriptions. Judge Connolly let the government pursue a claim that pharmacists dispensed prescriptions that Walmart compliance personnel knew were invalid. A fourth claim, that pharmacists dispensed prescriptions they knew were invalid, also remained pending.

What's New

Woodward said today’s settlement proves this department is committed to putting Americans’ flourishing first. The Walmart spokesperson said the company is pleased to resolve this matter and will continue supporting the exceptional work its pharmacists do every day to provide outstanding patient care. Federal prosecutors alleged that if Walmart was held liable, it would have been forced to pay $67,627 for each unlawful prescription it filled and $15,691 for each suspicious order it failed to report.

How Sources Differ

The Department of Justice settlement agreement states that Walmart agreed to pay $50 million to settle allegations that its pharmacies knowingly filled thousands of invalid opioid and other controlled-substance prescriptions.

The Department of Justice complaint alleges that Walmart pharmacists filled prescriptions with apparent warning signs, including dangerous drug combinations, repeated high-dose opioid prescriptions, and early refill requests.

Newsdata reports that over an approximately four-year period, Walmart shipped an estimated 37.5 million controlled-substance orders to its pharmacies.