Vioxx Class Action Suit Rejected

09/13/07

With "nearly 27,000 individual lawsuits from people claiming Vioxx [had] harmed them," the article continues, Merck, had the class action case continued, could have been out $15 billion to $18 billion.

In 2003, Chris Seeger sued Merck "on behalf of the [International Union of Operating Engineers]..., arguing that if Merck had disclosed those risks earlier, prescription plans would have favored other painkillers," says the article.

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Agreeing with Seeger, a state judge and an appeals court approved the suit; however, Merck appealed to the New Jersey Supreme Court.

Five judges sided with Merck.

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"The judges...wrote that the engineers' union and the other third-party payers 'are well-organized institutional entities with considerable resources,' and that it was unlikely their claims were too small to pursue individually."

Now, after the class action suit's rejection, Seeger will "now pursue separate claims on behalf of individual unions."

"'Merck temporarily dodged a bullet. Merck didn't totally dodge the bullet,'" said Seeger.

The drug, Vioxx, was discovered to increase the risks of heart attacks and strokes and was pulled from shelves three years ago.