Dangerous Drug Injury Lawyer
Pharmaceutical companies manufacture and market hundreds of new drugs each year. Each product is regulated and approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before it reaches the consumer. However, even with this oversight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) pharmaceutical drugs kill over 40,000 people each and every year. In 2011, it was reported that prescription drug deaths outnumbered traffic fatalities in the United States. Recent studies highlighted by the CDC estimate that more than 50% of all the drugs marketed to the American consumer have injurious effects, despite testing and FDA regulation.
Manufacturer Liability
History shows that dangerous drugs cause most harm within the first 12 months of their release. This means that many products are released without a full appreciation of their risks, with early adopters often suffering injury as a result. However, some drugs are still marketed by drug companies even after evidence of serious side effects or death had been noted.
By law, drug manufacturers are strictly liable for injuries if the product they sell is defective or unreasonably dangerous.
This can happen in several ways:
- The product may be defective because of a manufacturer error.
- Consumers may not be warned of possible bad effects from the use of the product.
- The product has a design flaw that makes it dangerous.
Dangerous drug lawyers know that in all of these cases, the manufacturer is liable and can be sued for damages even if they were not aware of the danger. It does not matter how carefully the product was produced or labeled.
Dangerous Drug Examples
Pharmaceutical products have caused enough widespread injury such that thousands of lawsuits, called mass tort litigation, have been filed against the manufacturers. Some of these drugs include: Avandia, Bextra, Fosamax and Celebrex. Wyeth Pharmaceuticals has paid billions of dollars for injuries sustained due to use of the weight-loss drug combination known as Fen Phen.
Of additional concern are the dietary supplements which are becoming increasingly popular. The FDA requires that manufacturers assure that such supplements are safe before selling them, but no formal testing or approval requirements exist.
Other drugs which may have hurt patient unknowingly include:
| Accutane | Prempro | ||
| Actos | ReNu | ||
| Bextra | Seroquel | ||
| Celebrex | Serzone | ||
| Crestor | Tequin | ||
| Dostinex | Testosterone Therapy | ||
| Fosamax | Trasylol | ||
| Ortho Evra | YAZ/Yazmin | ||
| Permax | Zofran |
Many resources exist to help community members understand which drugs pose a risk and how they should be properly handled. A few helpful resources include:
Life Source’s “Twelve Most Dangerous Prescription Drugs”
Sixty Minute’s Special on the Most Dangerous Drugs – explaining the drugs that cause the most fatalities nationwide.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Drug Alerts
Obtain Experienced Legal Aid from a Dangerous Drugs Attorney
When you pursue a legal claim for compensation for injuries caused by a prescription Drug, the defendant(s) will typically be larger corporations with virtually unlimited financial resources and a team of attorneys and experts. Effective litigation of a product liability claim in this context can best be pursued with an attorney with extensive experience. Cleveland defective medical device attorney Joel A. Nash has obtained millions of dollars for injury victims throughout the United States. Mr. Nash has over 20 years of experience representing victims of clients. We offer a free consultation, so we can explain your rights and answer your questions, so call us at (855) 755-2978 or email us.