NY to sue CVS, Rite Aid over expired product sales

By Bill Berkrot

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said on Thursday that he was taking legal action against the CVS and Rite Aid drug store chains for selling expired over-the-counter medicines and food products.

The expired products included milk, eggs, baby formula and a wide range of cold medicines and decongestants for adults and children, allergy treatments and other over-the-counter medicines.

"Frankly, I'm a little shocked at the scope of what we found," Chuck Bell, programs director of Consumers Union, said at a news conference.

Some of the medicines purchased by undercover investigators were more then two years past their expiration dates, officials said. Expired medicines can lose potency and be rendered ineffective, while old baby formula can lose important nutrients.

Cuomo said the two chains have been sent five-day notice letters informing them of the intent to begin litigation against them. The practices found violate a host of federal, state and local laws, he said.

The ongoing statewide investigation of major drug store chains began in March, and CVS, a unit of CVS Caremark Corp, and Rite Aid Corp, were found to be the worst offenders.

To date, the probe uncovered 142 CVS stores and 112 Rite Aids in more than 41 counties that sold expired products, officials said. That represented 60 percent of the CVS stores and 43 percent of Rite Aid stores visited by undercover investigators.

They were able to purchase more than 600 expired products.

Cuomo said he said he did not know whether the pattern of selling expired drugs and food by the two chains was a matter of mismanagement or malicious intent, but either way it was illegal.

"They are aware as of today of our findings," Cuomo said.

Consumer advocates taking part in the news conference urged other U.S. states to follow Cuomo's lead and urged people to check the expiration dates on all over-the-counter medicines and perishable food products before they purchase them.

The lawsuits will seek penalties and a halt to the practice of selling expired products. Among the penalties for which the companies may be liable, state law calls for $500 per violation, officials said.

Neither CVS nor Rite Aid was immediately available to comment.

(Reporting by Bill Berkrot, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)