COBigRed, Inc., the operator of Hometown Pharmacy & Medical in Trinidad, Colorado, has agreed to a settlement involving allegations of unlawful dispensing of controlled substances. The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announced that the pharmacy will pay $250,000 in civil penalties to resolve claims that it violated the Controlled Substances Act.
The allegations against Hometown Pharmacy cover a period from January 2017 to December 2023. It is claimed that during this time, the pharmacy filled prescriptions for controlled substances without legitimate medical purposes or outside professional practice norms. The United States pointed out several red flags such as high daily doses of opioids and dangerous drug combinations. Additionally, issues included prescriptions paid in cash despite insurance coverage, long-distance travel by patients for prescriptions, and repeated early refills sought by patients.
Hometown Pharmacy allegedly failed to conduct due diligence on these prescriptions by not checking Colorado’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program database or documenting due diligence properly. These actions are said to have led to serious public harm through unlawful drug diversion.
To address these issues, Hometown Pharmacy has entered into an agreement with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) which includes strict compliance terms with the Controlled Substances Act moving forward.
“Pharmacies have an obligation to ensure that every prescription they fill is for a legitimate medical purpose,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney J. Bishop Grewell. He emphasized that pharmacies must be held accountable when failing in their duties.
DEA Rocky Mountain Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan C. Pullen commented on the trust placed in pharmacists: “Hometown Pharmacy violated this trust and DEA relentlessly pursued justice and accountability against the pharmacy.”
While agreeing to settle, Hometown Pharmacy did not admit any liability regarding these allegations. The investigation was conducted by the DEA's Rocky Mountain Division with assistance from Affirmative Civil Enforcement counsel.
