In yet another MDL Reglan lawsuit that was first filed back in March in Illinois, the plaintiffs have grown to a staggering 1,000 in the case titled Agresta v. Walgreens.
This MDL is the result of 70 plaintiffs that have consolidated their cases. The lead plaintiff in this matter is Kathleen Agresta. She contracted the most frequent side effect from taking Reglan, tardive dyskinesia (TD). The condition is characterized by symptoms that are similar to those of Parkinson’s disease, including lip smacking, uncontrollable blinking and uncontrollable twitching of the extremities. Agresta was taking Reglan to treat acid reflux.
The various plaintiffs in the case have filed their lawsuits against the brand name makers of Reglan, Wyeth and Schwarz Pharma, as well as the makers of the generic versions like Teva Pharmaceuticals and Pliva Inc. However, the defendants don’t stop there. The plaintiffs have also included Walgreens in their complaint. Walgreens is the largest drugstore franchise in the United States. They were included in the lawsuits because the plaintiffs are claiming that Walgreens was negligent in giving out the prescriptions beyond the 12-week period that is supposed to be the cutoff point with the medication.
Reglan’s current warning label only approves patients taking the drug for 12 weeks because taking it longer increases the chances of patients suffering from the drug’s severe side effects like TD.
The Illinois MDL is being presided over by Judge Andrew Gleeson. Gleeson is going to host a status meeting on June 27. It is then that the judge may choose to include it with the 940 other Reglan lawsuits that are already consolidated in New Jersey state court. All of the plaintiffs that have filed Reglan lawsuits did so amid claims that the makers of the drug didn’t properly warn the public about the negative side effects that caused the FDA to issue a black box warning against Reglan in 2009.
