Rite Aid Cites Opioid Suits in Bankruptcy

Rite Aid’s bankruptcy filing on Tuesday, its second in less than two years, cited the impact of “over 1,600 opioid-related suits” as contributing to its debt of nearly $4 billion.
The drug store chain said it is looking for a buyer, and re-filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection will help facilitate that process.
The company said it would keep its stores open throughout its bankruptcy.
It said that $66.8 million in letters of credit would enable it to provide support under certain of its workers’ compensation, commercial automotive, and general liability insurance policies.
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The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has held that when a treating physician recommends an item—such as CBD oil as part of a treatment plan for a work-related injury, that it qualifies as a reimbursable medical expense under the state’s Workers’ Compensation Act.
The court interpreted “medicines and supplies” under the Act to cover anything that a physician, exercising professional judgment, includes in a treatment plan, not just FDA approved categories.
That includes non-prescription and over-the-counter products like CBD oil.
In reaffirming statutory language, the court emphasized that “hemp is legal if it has a Delta-9 THC concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis.”
That definition necessarily includes CBD products, removing any ambiguity that might have previously surrounded their legal status under Pennsylvania law.
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A New York State Appellate Court has revived a Labor Law claim by a worker for injuries resulting from his attempt to prevent his fall from the inverted bucket that he was using to work at an elevation.
In the case, LaGrippo v 95th & Third LLC, 2025 NY Slip Op 02288, First Dept 4-22-25, the court found that the plaintiff’s injury, not from a fall, but rather from his efforts to prevent his falling, can be covered under Labor Law 240(1).
As well, it found that standing on an inverted bucket constitutes a physically significant height-differential for purposes of liability under that law.
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