Press Release: 7/10/2026

AG Campbell Announces $36.5 Million Multistate Settlement with CVS for Allegedly Over-Dispensing Insulin Pens

BOSTON — Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, in collaboration with the U.S Department of Justice and a bipartisan coalition of 35 other state attorneys general, today announced a $36.5 million multistate settlement with CVS Pharmacy, Inc. (CVS) to resolve allegations that the company knowingly submitted false claims to MassHealth and other government healthcare programs (“GHPs”) by over-dispensing insulin pens and improperly obtaining reimbursement. 

Under the terms of the agreement, CVS will pay $36.5 million to the federal government and coalition states. Massachusetts will receive $1.3 million from the settlement. 

“MassHealth provides critical healthcare coverage to residents across the Commonwealth, and companies that exploit the program for profit undermine the trust placed in our public institutions,” said AG Campbell.“When companies submit improper claims and misuse taxpayer-funded resources, my office will hold them accountable. We will continue to protect public dollars and ensure these programs serve the people who depend on them.”  

The settlement resolves allegations that, from January 2010 through December 2020, CVS violated the federal False Claims Act and various state I'm false claims statutes, including the Massachusetts False Claims Act, by overbilling for and improperly dispensing insulin pens to patients enrolled in GHPs like MassHealth. According to the coalition, CVS knowingly gave patients more insulin than their doctors prescribed and refilled those prescriptions too early. To hide these actions, CVS allegedly underreported how many days the insulin supply should last, which tricked tracking systems into approving premature refills, violating rules that require pharmacies to use accurate usage data to calculate refill dates. As a result of these fraudulent claims, MassHealth reimbursed CVS for insulin that patients did not need. 

Per the terms of the agreement, CVS has admitted and accepted responsibility for certain conduct, including that GHPs paid CVS substantial amounts for insulin pen refills that were ineligible for reimbursement and CVS pharmacies dispensed more insulin pens to GHP beneficiaries than they needed. 

AG Campbell is joined in securing the settlement by the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. 

This matter was handled by Assistant Attorney General Molly Mahan of the AGO’s Medicaid Fraud Division.   

The AGO’s Medicaid Fraud Division is a Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, annually certified by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to investigate and prosecute health care providers who defraud the state’s Medicaid program, MassHealth. The Medicaid Fraud Division also has jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute complaints of abuse, neglect and financial exploitation of residents in long-term care facilities and of Medicaid patients in any health care setting. Individuals may file a MassHealth fraud complaint or report cases of abuse or neglect of Medicaid patients or long-term care residents by visiting the AGO’s website.    

 The Massachusetts Medicaid Fraud Division receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $6,458,176 for federal fiscal year 2026. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $2,152,724 for FY 2026, is funded by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.   

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