A Chicago jury awarded $16.6 million in damages (New York Times) to the family of a Chicago-area woman who died from an overdose after using a Duragesic pain-killing patch. The patch is made by Alza Corp. and distributed by Janssen Pharmaceutica, both subsidiaries of Johnson & Johnson.
But this is hardly the first time J&J's Duragesic patch has been implicated in a deadly overdose and a federal class action lawsuit is under way. The FDA announced a partial recall of Duragesic patches (Janssen press release, via class action web site) on Feb. 12, 2008.
Thirty-eight-year-old Chicago-area resident Janice DiCosolo died nearly six years ago as a result of an overdose of fentanyl, the active ingredient in the patch. The opioid (synthetic opiate) narcotic is used exclusively for treating cancer pain and is considered especially potent.
A jury in Sanford, Fla. awarded the family of Duragesic patch overdose victim Suan Hodgemire more than $13 million in October. She died in 2002 and along with DiCosolo joins a growing list of victims (New York Times), numbering more than 120, who suffered fatal overdoses from the drug.
Yet despite mounting legal claims and negative press, the drug companies responsible for the deaths are digging their heels in, according to an email from a spokesman for Alza and Janssen quoted in the Times article:
"We sympathize with the DiCosolo family over their loss. However, we disagree with the jury's verdict. We are considering our options for an appeal."
Do they need more evidence? Does their resistance have anything to do with the fact that the allegedly faulty product generated $1.16 billion in sales in 2007, the year before the lawsuits started getting filed?
Just how many deaths are acceptable before a drug company admits fault?
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How to file a Duragesic patch lawsuit (Class Action Lawsuit site)
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Chicago injury lawyers (FindLaw)
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Additional articles about Duragesic patch liability (New York Times)
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