Power Morcellators: FDA Urges More Safety Information

On November 24th, the United States Food and Drug Administration issued a news release suggesting that more safety information be added to the packaging of power morcellators, medical devices used in laparoscopic procedures (minimally-invasive surgeries) such as hysterectomy and myomectomy.  As hysterectomy is the second most common surgery undergone by women, safe medical devices for


IVC Filters: FDA Was Wary Four Years Back

Have you ever seen one of those metal head massagers, the ones with thin, spider-like metal legs that bend and flex to tickle your scalp?  That’s pretty much exactly how inferior vena cava filters look, except IVC filters are much smaller – they fit inside a vein, and are used to catch blood clots before


Tylenol MDL: Acetaminophen Linked to Serious Side Effects, Death

Last year, a Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) was created to consolidate lawsuits against McNeil PPC, Inc., the company that owns Johnson and Johnson, alleging that “over-the-counter (“OTC”) acetaminophen containing products that are [marketed] and sold under its TYLENOL® brand-name caused liver damage, including liver failure, even when taken as directed.” Currently, there are about 125 Tylenol


Strker Hip Replacement Settlement Valued at $1.4 Billion

This month, CBS affiliate WNEM reported that a settlement has been reached in a lawsuit over defective Stryker hips.  In this defective hip replacement settlement, Stryker agreed to pay over $1.4 billion in damages to patients who received faulty implants. For more on defective hip replacements, check out our sister blog, DangerousDrugs WNEM writes, “Thousands


Cook Medical IVC MDL Cases Transfered to Southern District of Indiana

Plaintiffs in 12 of 27 pending cases against Cook Medical successfully moved the Judicial Panel on Multi District Litigation (“JPMDL”) for centralization of their cases into an MDL.  These cases were centralized into an MDL,  In re Cook Medical, Inc., IVC Filters Marketing, Sales Practices, and Products Liability Location, MDL No. 2570, and were transferred


HIPAA, Tort Reform, and State Law Remedies for Violations

The demand for privacy law expertise continues to increase, as courts and lawmakers wrestle with the issue of what sorts of information are protected under the law, how violations are or should be enforced, what forms of recourse and relief are available to aggrieved parties, and where such relief may be obtained. The Eleventh Circuit


Punitive Damages, Deterrent Effect, and the Constitution

Judge Rebecca F. Doherty entered an amended judgment on October 27, 2014, reducing a $6 billion award of punitive damages against Takeda and a $3 billion award against Eli Lilly in Allen v. Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. et al., Civil No. 6:12-cv-00064, a case in the Actos MDL, proceeding in the Western District of Louisiana,


Stryker Rejuvenate and ABGII Hip Implant Settlement News

A long-awaited settlement was reached between Howmedica Osteonics Corp., manufacturer of the Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II hip implants, and representatives for persons injured by these medical devices. The settlement includes encompasses claims brought in both the federal MDL pending in the District of Minnesota ( In re: Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II Hip Implant


Center for American Progress Highlights Pitfalls of Tort Reform

A few weeks ago, the Center for American Progress published a short video detailing the deleterious effects tort reform has on public safety in Texas.  Here’s what they had to say about their video: “A new video from Legal Progress, the legal policy program at the Center for American Progress, documents the damaging effects of


Congress seeks explanation for generic drug price spike

Last month, members of the US Congress sent letters to 14 generic drug manufacturers, demanding explanation for the recent, dramatic spike in the price of some 20 generic drugs.  The Generic Pharmaceutical Association, a trade group representing the generic pharmaceutical industry, blames the increase on simple market forces, but many are suspicious of that response.