Posted On:
August 17, 2009
Protecting Pharmaceutical Negligence Victims
The Baltimore Injury Lawyer Blog has posted an article about protecting consumers from pharmaceutical negligence.
The article uses the example of Diana Levine, a woman who lost an arm because of the medication Phenergan. A jury awarded her $6 million in damages even though the drug company had the case appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. They argued that the FDA approved warning label should have released them from liability. The jury didn't agree.
Levine's case shows...
the many levels on which the civil justice system can be a positive force for change. First, Ms. Levine was able to secure compensation for her injury. Second, Wyeth has the opportunity to change the drug labeling to protect consumers from similar occurrences. Finally, this protects consumers as a group by ensuring that drug manufacturers can not merely do the bare minimum required by the FDA and escape liability for the foreseeable consequences of negligent acts.
