CVS to Pay $450,000 to Settle Claims That it Sold Expired Drugs, Infant Formula in PA
(Ken Wolter/Shutterstock.com)
CVS will pay $450,000 to settle charges that it sold expired over-the-counter drugs, infant formula and dairy products in Pennsylvania stores.
The settlement stems from an investigation by the Health Care Section of Attorney General Kathleen Kane’s office. In 2010, the state and the drug-store giant reached an agreement that called for CVS stores in Pennsylvania to voluntarily institute a system to ensure that expired products were not sold. (How that didn’t already exist is mind-boggling. We’re talking about medicine, milk and infant formula here.)
State agents “allegedly reported finding expired products, including infant formula and drugs made for children, at five of the six CVS stores they visited,” a statement from the attorney general’s office said. “CVS employees in two cases also allegedly bypassed a register prompt that was designed to prohibit the sale of expired products.”
CVS is now offering a $3.50 coupon to anyone who can find an expired product on its shelves in Pennsylvania. The company will also review its expired products policy and provide annual training to store managers and employees stocking baby food, dairy products, infant formula and over-the-counter drugs.
CVS will also “prominently post notices in the aisles where baby food, dairy products, infant formula and over the counter drugs are offered for sale, reminding customers to check the ‘Sell By’ or ‘Expiration’ dates,” the attorney general’s office said. CVS also promises to audit 25 retail stores in Pennsylvania every three months with all being inspected once per year. The state also has the right to perform store audits.
CVS will also do internal compliance checks to remove expired products from shelves.
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