Massachusetts top lawyer says a unit of Johnson & Johnson left one small risk of taking Risperdal out of its marketing for the anti-psychotic drug: increased risk of death.
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley sued J & J’s Ortho-McNeil-Janssen unit earlier this summer, alleging in a statement that the medical-product giant had failed to disclose an “increased risk of death” associated with the medication and marketed it for uses for which it had not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (The company promoted the drug as a treatment for dementia in the elderly and for a number of conditions in young people but, Coakley claims, the FDA OK’d it primarily for treating schizophrenia and bipolar mood disorder).
“Janssen’s illegal marketing and sales tactics helped the company generate hundreds of millions of dollars in sales in the Commonwealth,” the lawsuit states.
A Janssen spokeswoman responded that the J & J subsidiary will “vigorously defend” itself against the suit.
Massachusetts joins 10 other states suing J & J for improperly marketing Risperdal. Louisiana and South Carolina have won verdicts of hundreds of millions of dollars (The company is appealing those decisions). J & J had also been under investigation by the federal government, but reached a settlement with the Justice Department this month.
If you believe you’ve been harmed by Risperdal or another drug, contact Hodes Milman for a free case evaluation. We’re aggressive personal injury and medical malpractice lawyers based in Orange County, serving all of California. We have the experience to take on the medical industry and have achieved multi-million dollar verdicts for our clients.
