Recalled Drugs May Target China in Lawsuits
Many lawsuits have been filed in recent months involving two recalled drugs, the blood thinner heparin and the heart drug Digitek. What sets these apart is the link between the recalled drugs and China, who has been at the center of a number of recalls including toys, pet food and toothpaste recently. In past pharmaceutical litigation, plaintiffs’ lawyers alleged a “failure to warn” about possible risks of a drug that caused injury and death. The heparin suits are the first to be brought against a pharmaceutical manufacturer with ties to China. More than 40 lawsuits have been filed against the manufacturers of heparin so far and the number is expected to climb. In the past six months, about a dozen manufacturers, primarily Baxter International Inc., as well as their distributors and suppliers, have recalled much of the nation's supply of heparin after a contaminant was discovered in the drug linked to allergic and sometimes deadly reactions. The contaminant was tied to a supplier in China. According to the FDA, 124 deaths have been associated with the contaminated heparin. “This is going to be the tip of the potential iceberg in terms of Chinese manufacturing and drugs,” said attorney William M. Audet, a plaintiffs lawyer who has brought several drug cases and anticipates filing up to 60 lawsuits involving heparin and Digitek.
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