Walgreens To Pay $2.25 Million In Overcharging Settlement

BAY AREA — Walgreens will pay $2.25 million without admitting wrongdoing as a result of a civil law enforcement action related to alleged pricing and expiration date violations, San Mateo County prosecutors said today.

A Santa Clara County Superior Court judge approved the modified judgment on Monday in a settlement brought on by the district attorneys of San Mateo, Santa Clara, Contra Costa and Santa Cruz counties.

The district attorneys alleged that the operator of more than 600 Walgreens stores in California violated state law by charging customers more than the lowest posted or advertised price for items after scanner inspections conducted by local Weights and Measures offices.

The district attorneys also alleged that Walgreens failed to comply with laws prohibiting selling or offering to sell infant formula or baby food after the "use by" date and over-the-counter drugs after their expiration date had passed, prosecutors said.

Walgreens will pay the civil penalties and costs in addition to instituting a compliance program to ensure the removal of products prior to the "use by" or expiration dates.

The program will include processes to make sure that consumers are charged accurately, such as removal of shelf tags from store shelves prior to expiration and adjusting charges at point of sale to reflect the lowest
advertised price, prosecutors said.

This judgment replaced a 2013 pricing violations judgment against Walgreens by adding new provisions to address new pricing and expired product violations, according to prosecutors.

— Bay City News; (AP Photo/Stephen J. Carrera)