If you were the Express Scripts person in charge of the relationship with Walgreens, you might be in need of a few aspirin at the very least. The Wall Street Journal ^[1] reports that the big pharmacy benefits manager and the big drugstore chain are suing each other in federal court. Express Scripts, which tries to hold down drug spending for employers, says Walgreens padded costs by substituting capsules for less expensive tablets. Walgreens says Express Scripts began used “unprecedented, abusive” audits to apply pressure during contract negotiations, and has improperly clawed back millions of dollars from payments to the drugstore chain.

For those of you who like a good business battle, the Journal has links to both lawsuits.