The maker of Pradaxa®, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, faces a new wave of lawsuits for its billion-dollar revenue maker. Pradaxa, one of many new anti-coagulants on the market, has been linked to serious health risks, including death.
Back in May of 2014, Boehringer Ingelheim agreed to settle in about 4,000 product liability lawsuits concerning Pradaxa. The drug maker agreed to a $650 million settlement, with the expected payout to average $150,000 per claim. However, additional victims of Pradaxa’s manufacturer are now filing cases in various state courts throughout the country.
Pradaxa (or dabigratran) is a blood thinner, which is used to prevent the clotting of blood. It is FDA approved to treat the reduction of risk of stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation, as well as, to treat deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. However, since being on the market, the FDA has received over 4,000 reports of adverse side effects associated with the medication, including more than 500 deaths. The drug has been linked to instances of uncontrolled internal bleeding, which can lead to death.
In 2015, the U.S. District Judge overseeing the multi-district litigation (MDL) of Pradaxa ordered that all attorneys appointed in the litigation should be resolved of their duties and obligations as there were now active cases pending other than those related to the $650 million global settlement. However, since then a number of new complaints have been filed in courts throughout the country regarding new claims, with similar allegations as previously. The complaints boil down to allegations that Boehringer Ingelheim continues to provide inadequate warning labels regarding the risk of serious bleeding from the use of Pradaxa. These suits continue to be filed as a number of similar Xarelto lawsuits are now being pursued. Xarelto is another anti-coagulant out on the market, which can lead to serious and life threatening conditions.
In particular, a complaint out of Connecticut alleges that defendants, including Boehringer Ingelheim, promoted Pradaxa as a “novel medicine” for patients suffering from non-valvular atrial fibrillation and that it was more effective than warfarin (an anti-coagulant that has been on the market for years). However, defendants failed to adequately disclose that there was no means to reverse the anticoagulant effects of the drug, and that such irreversibility could have life-threatening and even fatal consequences. The complaint goes on to allege violations of the Connecticut Product Liability Act, similar to Colorado’s Product Liability Act, which is codified in C.R.S. § 13-21-401 et al.
This new round of lawsuits indicates that the drug maker of Pradaxa continues to fail to warn consumers of the dangers of this drug, and that many out there are subjecting themselves to potential serious side effects without any knowledge. Please, if you have been injured due to the use of Pradaxa, report this to the FDA and contact an experienced attorney today.
