Why Pradaxa is the Country’s Next Blockbuster Civil Settlement

Do you ever find yourself captivated by a prescription drug commercial, thinking that the subject drug is just the “cure” you’ve been looking for to aid your ailment? Then all of a sudden in extremely small script at the bottom of the screen accompanied by a fast-talking auctioneer-like gentleman, you learn of the potential side effects; most of which seem worse than your initial problem to begin with?

In the past few years, an influx of both individual and class action law suits have been filed by patients that took various prescription drugs that had devastating side effects. Pradaxa is among one of the many medications that has sparked such litigation.

What is Pradaxa?

Pradaxa is a blood thinning medication prescribed to prevent clotting. It was approved and commonly prescribed to patients with atrial fibrillation (irregular heart beat) as a means of stroke prevention. Pradaxa was meant to replace Coumadin or Warfarin, and marketed as a drug that would be easier for patients to use because it required less monitoring by a doctor.

Problems with Pradaxa

Soon after Pradaxa hit the market alleged side effects of uncontrollable bleeding problems were reported. Thousands of reports began to surface where doctors were unable to control patient bleeding, oftentimes resulting in death; hundreds throughout the United States to date. The previous drug, Warfarin (on the market since the 1950s) had a reversal agent, the proverbial antidote to control bleeding; Pradaxa however has no such fix available, resulting in helplessness on behalf of physicians nationwide.

 Legal Claims Against Pradaxa

The numerous cases filed nationwide allege that consumption of the drug has caused patients to suffer severe gastrointestinal bleed resulting in hospitalization. Claims have been asserted for strict liability based on failure to warn and design defect, negligence, negligent misrepresentation, fraud, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, negligence per se, fraudulent concealment, and violation of consumer protections laws.

The first of such lawsuits is scheduled to be heard in late 2014. The federal courts have begun consolidating the “Pradaxa Litigation” into a Multi-District lawsuit. Approximately 200 plaintiffs are enrolled in this particular action with a number of other lawsuits pending nationwide.