February 5, 2013
A decision by the Alabama Supreme Court could have a huge impact on the way drug injury cases involving generic medications are handled. According to an article by Injury Lawyer News, the decision gives those who have suffered drug-related injuries as the result of taking a generic form of medication the right to sue the drug’s name-brand manufacturer.
A decision reached in Pilva v. Mensing found generic drugs are required to carry the same labels as their name-brand counterparts. Therefore, a user could not sue a name-brand drug manufacturer for being unaware of the risks involved with taking a generic medication.
Manufacturers of the drug Reglan, however, failed to warn users about potential health risks, such as developing tardive dyskinesia, and were later forced to add a warning to the product’s packaging.
Court documents show an Alabama Drug Injury victim developed tardive dyskinesia after taking a generic form of Reglan and filed a lawsuit. The Supreme Court ruled that if something was left off or a problem was discovered with a name-brand drug’s label, the same mistake would likely occur on a generic version’s label. As a result, the name-brand manufacturer would be at least partially to blame for an injury that results from taking a generic form of a drug.
The Alabama Personal Injury Lawyers with Norris Injury Lawyers hope a decision in the case will help bring a sense of closure to the victim.
