There are times when medication does more harm than good. The damage can be serious, even life-threatening.
If you or a loved one is suffering from medication side effects, it’s time to know your rights. You may be asking yourself, “can I sue for a medication’s side effects?” The answer is yes. Read on to see why.
Product Liability
People have sued over the ill effects of medication. You can think of medication-induced health damage as a type of product liability case, often pursued by huge swaths of plaintiffs as a mass tort lawsuit.
Medication liability cases often make the news because of their sheer scale. Some of the most legendary product liability cases involving medication include heart and diabetes meds.
You may recognize the most recent lawsuit of its kind, which is against Purdue Pharma over its drug Oxycontin. In one of the largest medication liability cases in history, the government successfully sued the drug company for several billion dollars for the devastating effects its drug had on communities nationwide.
But do you need to get involved with a massive tort case to receive damages over medication? Do thousands of other people need to have been injured by medication for you to sue for a medication’s side effects or otherwise harmful aftermath?
The answer is absolutely not. You can sue a drug company on your own if you understand where a drug company has neglected its responsibilities.
You can even sue for side effects of Taxotere and other prescription chemotherapy drugs.
When You Have a Case
There are three major instances when you would rightfully have a case against a drug company over the harmful effects of its medication. You can sue if you can prove a drug’s:
- Manufacturing Defects
- Dangerous Side Effects
- Marketing Defects
First of all, a drug is a product. And, like any product, mistakes can happen throughout the manufacturing process. When it comes to pharmaceuticals, mishaps during production can mean severe reactions, like gangrene, heart attacks, or even death.
You can sue for dangerous side effects as well, especially if the drug labeling or marketing failed to make you aware of the potential side effects. Side effects prove especially damaging or lethal if you have multiple underlying health issues or take many types of medication.
If a drug company practiced misleading or deceptive marketing, you might be able to sue for damages. A pharmaceutical company may underemphasize–or completely omit–the potential effects of a drug.
This is often the case for a drug’s addictive qualities, which was one of the foundations for the liability case against Purdue Pharma for Oxycontin.
Can I Sue For a Medication’s Side Effects?
If you are pondering the question ‘can I sue for a medication’s side effects?’, the short answer is yes. If a medication has ruined your life, the drug company may be to blame. If you get the right legal help, it’s possible to pursue a liability case.
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