The Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., has agreed to make the decision about whether the makers of the popular drug Reglan as well as other manufacturers can be sued over claims that they mislabeled Reglan’s side effects.
According to an ABC News report, the Supreme Court is set to consider if federal law is at least partially responsible for the many lawsuits coming out against the drug, since the FDA originally approved the drug for sale in the first place. Most of the lawsuits being filed against the makers of Reglan claim that the manufacturers did not properly label the side effects on the packaging.
The manufacturers that filed the appeals case were: Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Mylan Inc.’s UDL Laboratories and Actavis Inc. Actavis’ home base is in Iceland. In that company’s case, the U.S. appeals court made a ruling that Actavis could be sued by a specific woman that claimed that she was not warned properly about the risks of taking Reglan by the company. Julie Demahy is a claimant that is filing her lawsuit under a Louisiana law, and she claims that she was not properly warned about the risks involved in taking Reglan. She has suffered from a neurological disorder after taking the drug. Another of the serious side effects that occur in those patients that take Reglan is Tardive Dyskinesia. It is a disorder that causes uncontrollable facial movements.
While there is no set date as to when the Supreme Court will be hearing the case, it is bound to cause more controversy for the makers of Reglan. While the manufacturers always stand behind their products and their marketing of them, the past year has been rough on many drug makers. Countless lawsuits have been filed in 2010 alleging dishonest marketing; indeed, many drug manufacturers have been accused of not properly warning the public about the potential dangers of taking their drugs. Since 2010 was a busy time for lawsuits being filed, 2011 could see many drug companies losing billions in payouts.
