Last week, Walgreen customers filed a lawsuit accusing the company of unlawfully selling patient information obtained from prescriptions to drug companies for marketing purposes, Healthcare IT News reports.
Lawsuit Details
The lawsuit alleges that the national drugstore chain engages in data-mining practices and sells de-identified patient data to companies that then resell the information to pharmaceutical firms. Drugmakers use such information to target physicians who are considered high-volume prescribers, according to the lawsuit (Manos, Healthcare IT News, 3/18). The data that are sold include the:
The lawsuit states that Walgreen deprived the plaintiffs of the commercial value of their own prescription information.
Jeffrey Krinsk, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said, “We believe this information belongs to the patient who paid for the drug, not the pharmacy.”
The plaintiffs further accuse the company of raising medical costs by enabling the sale of high-priced, brand-name drugs instead of less expensive, generic alternatives.
Walgreen Response
Robert Elfinger, a spokesperson for Walgreen, declined to comment on the lawsuit (Baynes, Reuters, 3/11).
Source: iHealthBeat
