A woman from California has filed a Levaquin lawsuit after she suffered a tendon rupture while taking the controversial antibiotic.
Geraldine Harris filed her lawsuit in the St. Clair County Circuit Court on June 3. She is suing Johnson & Johnson, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical Inc. and Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development LLC for negligence, breach of warranties and consumer fraud.
Levaquin is commonly prescribed as a treatment for various infections like bronchitis and sinusitis. In her lawsuit, Harris maintains that research has proven that the drug increases a patient’s risk of developing tendon ruptures and subsequent injuries, especially in people over the age of 60. She says that the research findings to that effect have been known by the drug makers since 1997 and that the company tried to hide the risks before eventually making various label changes to reflect the risk of taking Levaquin.
With Johnson & Johnson trying to hide the risks from the public in the past, many people like Harris have taken the drug and have suffered tremendous injuries as a result of it. The amount of her lawsuit is not specified, but she is asking for court costs, medical expenses and damages. Harris has requested a jury.
Harris’ lawsuit is just one of thousands that have been filed against Johnson & Johnson amid claims that the company hid the information about the risks associated with Levaquin. One plaintiff, John Shedin, won his lawsuit and was awarded $1.8 million. However, a second lawsuit filed by Calvin Christenson was lost under the same claim.
In a new twist on Levaquin lawsuits, Harris contends that a Japanese company, Daiichi, developed levofloxacin during the 1980s even though the drug has been “promoted, sold and distributed in the United States by Johnson & Johnson as Levaquin since 1997.”
It’s anyone’s guess as to how Harris’ case will turn out, but one thing is for certain: Many people will be watching the next Levaquin ruling.
