Jury finds Merck liable for Vioxx death
19 Aug 2005
BOSTON (MarketWatch) - A Texas jury found Merck & Co. liable Friday in the sudden cardiac death of a man who had used the company's recalled painkiller Vioxx, and awarded his widow $253.4 million in damages.
The decision sets what could be a damaging precedent for the drug company, which faces thousands more lawsuits over its former blockbuster pain reliever. Investors pushed Merck shares down nearly 8 percent Friday after the verdict was announced.
A state jury in Angleton, Texas, awarded $24.4 million in actual damages and $229 million in punitive damages to Carol Ernst, whose late husband Robert died in his sleep in 2001 after taking Vioxx for about eight months.
In a statement released after the verdict, Merck said that it was "disappointed" by the verdict and planned to appeal. "We believe that the plaintiff did not meet the standard set by Texas law to prove Vioxx caused Mr. Ernst's death," said Jonathan Skidmore of Fulbright & Jaworski, a member of Merck's defense team.
The case, a civil wrongful-death suit, was sent to the jury early Thursday, after more than a month of testimony from a host of scientific experts. Former Merck Chief Executive Raymond Gilmartin also was called to testify.
Merck abruptly recalled Vioxx last fall after a clinical trial revealed some patients who used the drug for 18 months or longer had an increased rate of heart attacks and strokes. Before its removal from the market, Vioxx had been an enormously popular pain reliever, with 2003 sales of about $2.5 billion.
Vioxx's demise sparked intense debate in Washington, with several lawmakers calling to reform the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, alleging that the agency was dropping the ball on drug safety. Others have accused Merck of ignoring early data that showed the drug could cause cardiovascular problems.
The FDA eventually conducted a full safety review of Vioxx, along with Pfizer's (PFE: news, chart, profile) Celebrex and Bextra, which are chemically similar to Vioxx. The agency concluded that while Vioxx and Celebrex carried varying degrees of cardiovascular risks, they were still safe enough to be sold, albeit with restrictions. The FDA, however, asked Pfizer to remove Bextra from the market.
Despite the FDA's green light, Merck has yet to put Vioxx back on the market.
19 Aug 2005
BOSTON (MarketWatch) - A Texas jury found Merck & Co. liable Friday in the sudden cardiac death of a man who had used the company's recalled painkiller Vioxx, and awarded his widow $253.4 million in damages.
The decision sets what could be a damaging precedent for the drug company, which faces thousands more lawsuits over its former blockbuster pain reliever. Investors pushed Merck shares down nearly 8 percent Friday after the verdict was announced.
A state jury in Angleton, Texas, awarded $24.4 million in actual damages and $229 million in punitive damages to Carol Ernst, whose late husband Robert died in his sleep in 2001 after taking Vioxx for about eight months.
In a statement released after the verdict, Merck said that it was "disappointed" by the verdict and planned to appeal. "We believe that the plaintiff did not meet the standard set by Texas law to prove Vioxx caused Mr. Ernst's death," said Jonathan Skidmore of Fulbright & Jaworski, a member of Merck's defense team.
The case, a civil wrongful-death suit, was sent to the jury early Thursday, after more than a month of testimony from a host of scientific experts. Former Merck Chief Executive Raymond Gilmartin also was called to testify.
Merck abruptly recalled Vioxx last fall after a clinical trial revealed some patients who used the drug for 18 months or longer had an increased rate of heart attacks and strokes. Before its removal from the market, Vioxx had been an enormously popular pain reliever, with 2003 sales of about $2.5 billion.
Vioxx's demise sparked intense debate in Washington, with several lawmakers calling to reform the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, alleging that the agency was dropping the ball on drug safety. Others have accused Merck of ignoring early data that showed the drug could cause cardiovascular problems.
The FDA eventually conducted a full safety review of Vioxx, along with Pfizer's (PFE: news, chart, profile) Celebrex and Bextra, which are chemically similar to Vioxx. The agency concluded that while Vioxx and Celebrex carried varying degrees of cardiovascular risks, they were still safe enough to be sold, albeit with restrictions. The FDA, however, asked Pfizer to remove Bextra from the market.
Despite the FDA's green light, Merck has yet to put Vioxx back on the market.
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