Redux Class Action Suit: Pharmaceutical Company Target of Lawsuits
May 17, 2001
Pharmaceutical companies are responsible for some of the greatest advances in modern healthcare; however, there is a growing side effect associated with the business, lawsuits. Many once promising wonder drugs have become the target of criticism and personal injury suits after they caused more harm than good. Case in point, American Home Product Corporation's Redux and Pondimin, used in the deadly fen-phen diet drug combination.
While American Home Products has been a trusted name in medicine for decades, responsible for such familiar products as Robitussin, Preparation H and Advil, lately the company's fortunes have turned. The company is faced with billions of dollars in lawsuits alleging that Redux, Pondimin, and fen-phen caused hundreds of deaths and many more severe heart defects. The drugs were pulled from the market in 1997 after the FDA discovered that they caused severe heart valve defects. Many Redux, Pondimin and fen-phen patients have died or suffered life-altering complications because of heart valve damage. More troubling, however, are the thousands of others who took the drugs who may have heart valve damage, yet no obvious symptoms. These silent victims may be walking around with a serious heart defect that needs attention. It is important for anyone who took Redux, Pondimin or fen-phen to consult with his or her doctor.
As for American Home Products, the company has already paid over $5 billion dollars to victims, including one large class action settlement in the amount of $4.8 billion to over 11,000 people. In a separate lawsuit, a Mississippi jury awarded five people injured by Redux, Pondimin, or fen-phen $150 million.
Unfortunately for American Home Products and consumers of its drugs, the company has had a rash of recalls and lawsuits in recent years. Norplant, the female contraceptive implant, has sparked lawsuits. So has the painkiller Duract.
As for the diet drugs, evidence shows that American Home Products knew of 41 medical problems caused by Pondimin as early as 1994 yet refused to warn patients and doctors. Federal law requires that drug manufacturers report all adverse events associated with their products to the FDA within 15 days. Critics say that American Home Products consistently failed to report such adverse events. The company says that since the Redux, Pondimin, and fen-phen litigation it has "put in place a brand-new computer tracking system that allows us to more easily categorize [reports] and look for trends."
-- Article Courtesy of InjuryBoard.com
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