Reportedly, New England Compounding Center is facing a barrage of personal injury lawsuits regarding one of the largest drug contamination cases in recent U.S. history. Federal investigators found that contaminated steroids produced by New England Compounding in Massachusetts were the source of a nationwide outbreak of fungal meningitis that affected hundreds of Americans.
Henry J. Boroff, a U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge has stated that January 15 is the deadline for victims to file a claim regarding the contaminated drugs. According to estimates from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 750 people across twenty states have suffered from complications linked to injections of methylprednisolone acetate, including fungal meningitis. The tainted steroids resulted in sixty four deaths. Furthermore, 14,000 other individuals received the tainted shots, many of whom reported blurred vision, headaches, and other maladies.
One victim, Dee Morell received an arthritis treatment shot in September 2012 but soon had difficulty walking, required painkillers constantly, and has been unable to work for the last ten months. Another victim, Mary Jo Tolbert, spent three weeks in the hospital and, when her kidneys stopped functioning, had to be put on dialysis because of a contaminated injection. Reportedly, 619 victims have already filed a legal claim, though there could be hundreds of other victims coming forward before the January 15 deadline.
According to the government investigation, black material was found floating in some drug vials at New England Compounding’s lab in Framingham, Massachusetts. Furthermore, investigators found evidence that the pharmacy was aware of the contamination of the clean room but shipped the drugs to clinics without properly testing them.
It has been over a year since New England Compounding Center surrendered its license on October 3, 2012. Soon after, the drug manufacturer filed for bankruptcy and faces numerous lawsuits regarding the drug contamination. Drug safety is a serious issue and tainted medication can cause devastating injury to individuals. Victims of New England Compounding’s contaminated injections may be able to recover damages from the pharmacy, its owners, and other companies owned by the firm’s founding family.
