Opinion ID: 853168
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Irreparable Harm and Balance of Harms

Text: As noted above, a plaintiff must prove four things to justify a preliminary injunction, which we caption as (1) irreparable harm, (2) likelihood of success on the merits, (3) balance of harms, and (4) public interest. We will proceed to consider each factor. Walgreens’ initial burden was to demonstrate that “remedies at law were inadequate, thus causing irreparable harm pending resolution of the substantive action.” Tilley, 725 N.E.2d at 153-54 (citations omitted). If an adequate remedy at law exists, injunctive relief should not be granted. A party suffering mere economic injury is not entitled to injunctive relief because damages are sufficient to make the party whole. Xantech Corp. v. Ramco Indus., Inc., 643 N.E.2d 918, 921-22 (Ind. Ct. App. 1994).[4] The crux of Walgreens’ argument is that a reduction in dispensing fees and reimbursement rates will cause a handful of pharmacies to close. Plaintiff Ralph Anderson testified that he owns two Bedford pharmacies: a retail pharmacy that offers prescription home delivery, among other services, and an institutional pharmacy that does not conduct business directly with the public. Anderson said the institutional pharmacy would likely close and speculated that the other might as well.[5] (T.R. at 212, 227-28.) Also, a CVS spokesman testified that “some” of the 268 CVS pharmacies located in Indiana “will ultimately have to be closed” as a result of the Medicaid cuts. (T.R. at 254, 256, 259.) He cited only three definite instances, and further testified that closing stores was part of the ordinary course of business and that customers of the closed stores always find alternative providers. (T.R. at 259, 267-68, 270-72, 277.) Walgreens failed to identify any injury beyond purely economic injury, which is not enough to justify injunctive relief. We conclude that post-trial damages would adequately compensate for any injuries should Walgreens prevail at trial. Moreover, the potential harm from the estimated one hundred million dollar State Medicaid deficit outweighs Walgreens’ potential injury.