Pain Patch Lawsuit Verdict Goes to Plaintiff

Score one defeat and one victory for major pharmaceutical companies within the past few days.

The defeat came for Johnson & Johnson, when a Texas jury ruled July 7 that the company had to pay $772,500 in actual damages to the family of a woman who died because of leakage in a pain relief patch.

The Associated Press reports that a Houston jury found that Johnson & Johnson was responsible for the death of Michaelynn Thompson, who had used two patches called Duragesic to manage pain she had suffered after an automobile accident.

The jury didn't award any punitive damages, the wire service reported, and Johnson & Johnson maintains the Duragesic patches are safe. According to the A.P., the company is examining its legal options for an appeal. For the past year The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been investigating a reported 120 deaths tied to pain patches made by Johnson & Johnson and Mylan Laboratories.

Meanwhile, international pharmaceutical giant Roche has been given clearance to continue clinical trials in the United States of an anemia drug known as Cera, or peg-EPO.

The Ventura County Star reports that a challenge by the biotech company Amgen to keep Cera testing out of the United States was denied by an administrative law judge with the U.S. International Trade Commission.

Amgen makes drugs similar to Cera and is currently suing Roche for patent infringement. An Amgen spokesman told the newspaper that the administrative judges ruling would have no impact on the patent lawsuit.

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Last updated 7/8/2006.

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