Defective Drugs

Defective Drugs

When a consumer receives a prescription for medication from his or her physician, he or she would likely believe that drug is safe. However, safe does not necessarily mean harmless. According to the US Food and Drug Administration, “safe” means that the benefits of the drug outweigh the risks for the population the drug is intended to treat and for its intended use. A defective drug is one whose potential risks offset its anticipated benefits. Likewise, a defective drug is one whose potential risks outweigh its possible benefits to the consumer.

Defective drugs may cause serious injury in individuals and sometimes even death. Often these drugs are known as dangerous and are still available on the market with a warning label. Warning labels are provided by the drug manufacturers to physicians and the pharmacy that dispenses the medications. Doctors and pharmacists may be held liable for failing to warn patients / consumers of these possible dangers. If a drug you have been taking is now listed as defective and you feel you have been injured, contact a lawyer at Rheingold, Valet, Rheingold, Shkolnik & McCartney LLP in New York, New York, to schedule a consultation to discuss your options.

Off-Labeling Prescriptions

Doctors may also use drugs for unapproved purposes. This is often called off-label prescriptions and is when doctors prescribe medications in ways that the FDA did not recommend. Uses of medications not deemed safe and effective by the FDA have caused serious injury and have been fatal. According to the FDA, the number of patients injured by off-label drugs is growing each year and most people are not informed that their treatments are not approved. Although, off-label prescriptions sometimes help, this practice is causing more harm than good, according to the New England Journal of Medicine. This practice is not illegal, doctors may prescribe medications as they see fit. The drug manufacturers may not market unapproved treatments. Even though off-label prescriptions are legal, it has been shown that if a doctor prescribes a medication according to FDA recommendations for dose, duration and purpose, adverse reactions are less likely to occur.

Pharmaceutical Liability

Pharmaceutical liability is also an issue with injuries caused by dangerous drugs. A prescription may be filled improperly causing injury to the consumer. This may be caused by the wrong dosage on the prescription or by pharmacist error. The pharmacist owes the customer a reasonable duty of care. This duty is to avoid negligently doing or failing to do an act, which may harm its patrons. Pharmacists should know the properties of the drugs they sell and are expected by customers and the courts to use that knowledge when dispensing medication to consumers. They should use the same degree of care as others in their profession proportionate to the danger involved. Of course, the level of care must also be determined by the circumstances on case-by-case bases.

If the incorrect medicine is listed on the physicians’ prescription or due to pharmacist error, the pharmacist may be found responsible. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, errors in filling prescriptions result in more than 550,000 injuries and over 100,000 deaths each year. Out of the 3 billion prescriptions filled yearly, an estimated 51.5 million errors were made, and 3.3 million of these were potentially dangerous mistakes. A pharmacist may be held liable for dispensing the wrong medication to a customer if injury results from this mistake. This would also include giving a customer a stronger solution or dose of the correct medication. Additionally, the pharmacist is required to make sure that the medicine they dispense is labeled correctly; this includes any misfiling or mislabeling of a prescription. Medications may also conflict with other prescriptions the patient is taking, due to the fact, the pharmacist’s duty is to be alert for medication errors. This may include the recognition of an unmistakable lethal dosage, insufficient instructions and conflicting prescriptions. A pharmacist should not dispense medications in a dosage that they know to be excessive or unsafe (possibly causing injury or death) this could constitute dispensing known poisons to a customer.

Before dispensing medications, a pharmacist must warn customers of any potential dangers associated with their prescription. The relationship between a pharmacist and a customer is direct and has the reasonable expectation that the pharmacist is an expert in prescription medication and dispensing medications. The customer relies on that expertise and professional judgment when obtaining their medication. Some state statutes also give the pharmacist a duty to use their professional judgment to prevent overuse and misuse of prescribed drugs. However, a pharmacist is not liable for the injuries of a customer who disregards the instructions provided by the pharmacist and exceeds the prescribed dosage of the medication or takes the prescription improperly (for example, taking a sleep inducing medication while driving.). In some jurisdictions, a pharmacist who fills a prescription precisely as written by a doctor is not required to warn a customer of possible risks or side effects of the medication. A physician should tell their patients of any potential risks or dangers associated with a particular drug. If the manufacturer informs a pharmacy of dangerous or risks, then the pharmacist should make the customer aware of these concerns.

Common Defective Drugs

Regardless of pharmacist or physician actions or inactions, there are still defective drugs available on the market. Although the FDA tests drugs and approves them prior to becoming available to people, some side effects may be difficult to determine. Especially long-term side effects. The best way to see how a drug with affect individuals long terms is to have people taking the drug and to monitor what happens. Improper use of drugs and dangerous combinations of drugs will have a negative impact on long-term results. It is important to know what drugs you are taking and if there are any possible dangers, you should be aware of. The FDA keeps an updated list of common drugs that have been shown to be defective. This list is kept up to date and viewable on MedWatch. Here is a list of common drugs to be aware of as well:

Accolate Adderall Advair Avandia Baycol COX-2 Inhibitors Cylert Elidel Ephedra Femara Fen Phen Gadolinium

Gardasil Herceptin Fosamax Ketek Lipitor Lotronex Nexium Ortho Evra Paxil Permax Prempro

Prilosec Protopic Provigil Prozac Redux Remicade Serevent Seroquel Tequin Viagra Zelnorm

Remember, this list is not exhaustive. It is important to check all medications you are taking with your doctor, pharmacist and the FDA’s Web site for updates on defective drugs. If a drug you have been taking is now listed as defective and you feel you have been injured, contact a lawyer at Rheingold, Valet, Rheingold, Shkolnik & McCartney LLP in New York, New York, to schedule a consultation to discuss your options.

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