Drug companies may face drug liability claims when their drugs injure patients. Lawsuits concerning the blood-thinning drug Xarelto were recently consolidated across the country; at the time of consolidation of the lawsuits, there were 21 lawsuits pending in 10 legal districts but it is foreseen that the number of lawsuits will grow. The maker of the drug, Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, opposed the consolidation. The decision to consolidate the cases, despite the drug maker's opposition, was based on a finding that the lawsuits shared similar questions of fact.
A lawsuit recently filed by one woman in a Midwest state alleges that her use of the drug to prevent blood clots resulted in the inability of her blood to properly clot. While the woman asserts that her blood does not clot in a timely manner as a result of her use of the drug, uncontrolled bleeding has been a common assertion by patients alleging injury as a result of using the drug.
The woman asserts that the possible risks associated with the drug were downplayed and that the drug was marketed as both safe and effective. The drug, however, allegedly increases the risk of potentially fatal serious bleeding and gastrointestinal bleeding. Xarelto has also been marketed as a newer blood-thinning drug that does not require medical monitoring and helps prevents strokes, however, unlike older blood-thinning medications, there is no antidote for Xarelto.
The woman asserts that she has suffered personal injuries, including physical and emotional harm, medical costs, lost earnings, and has experienced a loss of enjoyment of life following her use of the drug. She asserts that the drugmaker was negligent in failing to properly research and define the safety of the drug and provide adequate warnings for its use. The woman has brought a pharmaceutical liability lawsuit against the drugmaker for negligence, among other claims, as well as fraud and allegations based on strict product liability law.
It is important that consumers and the public are protected from harmful drugs. Because of this, patients who have been injured or suffered harm resulting from the use of a pharmaceutical drug they may have relied upon to improve their health have remedies available to them through the legal process.
