Merck Frost lost in Vioxx trial

Alexa · 08-20-2005, 04:30 PM

The jury in a Texas trial granted to the widow of Robert Ernst (dead in sleep in 2001, after a treatement with vioxx) $253.4 million US in damages.

The big bad wolf of pharmaceutical companies has more than 4,200 state and federal Vioxx-related lawsuits pending in the United States and others in Canada.

Quote:

But in February, a Food and Drug Administration advisory committee voted 17-15 that Vioxx could be returned to the U.S. market under certain restrictions for some patients.

In July, a panel of medical advisers to the Canadian government recommended by a 12-1 vote that Vioxx be reinstated with certain restrictions. Merck plans to discuss the matter with Canada's health department.

Do I have to add they do the law in Canada ?

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNew..._name=&no_ads=

littlemissattitude · 08-21-2005, 09:47 AM

The thing is, Merck won't end up paying anywhere near that much money to that faimily.* From what I understand, there are strct limits to how much in punitive damages can be awarded in a personal injury case like this one.* The analysis I heard is that the family will still get a couple of million dollars in punitive damages, but no where near the $229 million the jury awarded for punitive damages.* I understand, however, that there is no limit on awards for mental anguish and loss of companionship, and the jury awarded them a bit over $24 million on that account.

But, as I also understand from reports that I heard, the jury might have been trying to send a message with the amount of punitive damages they awarded.* Apparently the amount they awarded was exactly the same amount that Merck figured that they would save by delaying putting a warning label on Vioxx for three or four months.* It is as if the jury was saying to the company, "You thought you were going to save X amount of dollars by not informing people of the risk they were taking by using your product, but we're going to vote to take all of that away from you."

Edited to fix typo. :redface:

Alexa · 08-21-2005, 11:45 AM

Good for them. Merck can afford to pay those millions easily. The only problem is that if they pay for this trial, let's say $24 millions, how much money they'll have to pay for the others for the same product ? This could be the end of Merck.

I believe that message is important for all the pharmaceutical companies. Unfortunately each of them will continue to do what they want to have a maximum profit. They'll be more careful only the moment when they are the one to pay in trials. All is about money and not the health of a patient, especially for generic companies.