The question over the blood-thinning drug Xarelto poses a risk to patients was answered recently in court, however, the questions may still be up in the air. The manufacturer of the drug has the right to appeal any verdicts and in the most recent decision, they executed that right. Drug Watch reports on the Xarelto verdict being overturned, putting future lawsuits in question.
Xarelto is a novel oral anticoagulant (NOAC) approved by the FDA in 2011. It is prescribed to prevent blood clots in people with deep vein thrombosis and is a competitor to the older drug Warfarin. Warfarin, however, has an antidote when incidents of excessive bleeding occur while Xarelto does not.
The FDA has received more than 73,000 reports of adverse events related to the drug.
A Pennsylvania judge threw out a $27.8 million dollar verdict that had been delivered in one of the first of numerous class-action lawsuits against the manufacturers of the drug, Johnson & Johnson and Bayer.
Judge Michael Erdos tossed the verdict after a hearing on January 9th.
The attorney for the plaintiffs in the case says that the verdict was thrown out on a “narrow issue” of the prescribing physician and not over any question regarding the drug’s danger.
The verdict issued in December, though it has been overturned, was the first time that Johnson & Johnson and Bayer had lost a lawsuit related to Xarelto. In previous lawsuits, juries have always found for the defendant.
Have you experienced an adverse event as a result of taking the prescribed drug Xarelto? You may have a case. Let the law offices of John Foy & Associates fight for you. Call today.