Walgreens agrees to $44M settlement over allegedly defective Theranos blood tests

Walgreens Theranos settlement overview: 

• Who: Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc., Walgreen Arizona Drug Co., Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani and the entity holding the remaining assets of the now-defunct Theranos Inc. have agreed to a settlement. 
• Why: The settlement resolves claims Walgreens helped market defective Theranos blood tests that the pharmacy allegedly should have known were faulty. 
• Where: The case is in Arizona federal court. 

Walgreens has agreed to a $44 million settlement to resolve allegations it helped market defective and now-defunct Theranos blood tests, despite the fact the pharmacy allegedly should have known the finger-prick tests were faulty. 

The pharmacy will set up a non reversionary common fund of $44 million that will provide class members with around twice as much as their out-of-pocket damages — minus any refunds that were given due to the 2017 Arizona attorney general consent decree, Law360 reports. 

Class members will reportedly also receive $10 in base pay compensation, while individuals who lobbied battery claims against Walgreens will be eligible to receive between $700 and $1,000. 

Also a part of the agreement is Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, the former chief operating officer of Theranos who is serving a 13-year prison sentence after being convicted last year of defrauding Theranos patients and investors.  

Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes not included in class action settlement agreement

Balwani has agreed to give up on his own personal claims against Theranos to allow the entity to contribute $1.3 million of additional settlement funds to the class members, according to Law360. 

Absent from the settlement is former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes, who was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison last year for her role in the Theranos scandal via four counts of defrauding investors.  

The settlement agreement does not release any claims Walgreens may have against Holmes, Balwani or Theranos, meanwhile, according to a stipulation of class action settlement and general release. 

Holmes and Balwani have appealed their convictions and sentences, with both of their appeals currently pending, Law360 reports. 

In September 2021, the 9th Circuit denied an attempt by Walgreens and Balwani to get out of a class action lawsuit accusing the pair of deceiving consumers about the effectiveness of the Theranos blood tests. 

Were you damaged by the Theranos scandal? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Mark D. Samson, Ron Kilgard, Lynn Lincoln Sarko, Gretchen Freeman Cappio, Benjamin B. Gould, Sydney Read and Alison E. Chase of Keller Rohrback LLP and Michael W. Sobol, Roger N. Heller, Melissa Gardner, Michael K. Sheen, Amelia A. Haselkorn and John D. Maher of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP. 

The Walgreens Theranos case is In re: Arizona Theranos Inc. Litigation, Case No. 2:16-cv-02138, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.

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