Rite Aid moves to block opioid lawsuit during bankruptcy

Rite Aid believes its bankruptcy filing should be enough to once again pause a pending opioid lawsuit it’s facing in federal court, reports Reuters.

The DOJ agreed to briefly pause the suit when Rite Aid initially claimed bankruptcy. Now the floundering pharmacy retailer says the pending lawsuit is impacting its efforts to restructure, and that as a result, the suit should be paused once more. 

The lawsuit against  Rite Aid accuses the retailer of ignoring red flags and illegally processing hundreds of thousands of prescriptions for opioid medications.

Rite Aid is pointing to other opioid lawsuits that were automatically stopped during bankruptcy filings and wants U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michael Kaplan in New Jersey to rule over the case rather than the judge involved in the DOJ lawsuit in a Cleveland court.

The Department of Justice said it refutes Rite Aid’s attempt to block, arguing that U.S. bankruptcy does not stop the agency from following through with its lawsuit.

A committee has been appointed to represent the families of those affected by opioid abuse, who are represented in the lawsuit. An attorney for that committee  told Judge Kaplan that a pause in  Rite Aid’s bankruptcy filing could prevent victims from getting compensated.

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Rite Aid is suing the Department of Justice because it wants an opioid lawsuit blocked while it is in bankruptcy. The struggling retailer believes the DOJ lawsuit would make it difficult during restructuring. Do you think Rite Aid should be given a break while it is filing for bankruptcy? 

Let us know what you think in the comments below or email the SN staff at [email protected].