Philadelphia Personal Injury Lawyers Blog

The drug manufacturers Pfizer and Wyeth (which is now part of Pfizer) were ordered by two Philadelphia juries to pay over $100 million in punitive damages to two women who were prescribed the hormone replacement drug (HRT) Prempro. Attorneys for plaintiffs alleged that this dangerous drug caused their clients to develop breast cancer and as a result had mastectomies performed. The defendants were found negligent in failing to warn patients and their doctors of the serious health risks while taking HRT.

Donna Kendall of Decatur, Illinois was awarded $6.3 million in compensatory damages and an additional $28 million in punitive damages. Connie Barton, also of Illinois was awarded $3.5 million in compensatory damages and an additional $75 million in punitive damages. Plaintiffs proved that Pfizer/Wyeth knew of the serious risks of its drug but failed to disclose these risks to patients and their prescribing doctors.

There are over one thousand hormone replacement therapy cases in the Philadelphia court system and all five that have gone to trial in the past three years have resulted in plaintiff's verdicts. Philadelphia juries are clearly outraged that Pfizer/Wyeth put profits over the safety of women's health. Plaintiffs assert that the drug manufacturer did not conduct adequate studies that would have revealed the breast cancer risk because the HRT drugs were producing revenues in excess of $2 billion annually.

Over six million women take HRT drugs to treat their menopause symptoms such as mood swings, night sweats, and hot flashes. Currently Pfizer is not seeking a global settlement. Plaintiff attorneys have been working hard to consolidate cases to ensure that all clients have their day in court.

Philadelphia parents should immediately stop using all Maclaren brand strollers. After several reports of children having their fingers amputated by the stroller, Maclaren in cooperation with the Consumer Product Safety Comission (CPSC), has recalled all makes and models of their umbrella strollers. The defective strollers have been found to amputate children's fingers when placed in the hinge where the stroller closes. The recall covers over one million strollers that have been sold nationwide in the past decade.

The recall comes at a surprise to many parents because the brand has a reputation for being extremely dependable. The light, compatible, upscale but relatively inexpensive stroller is very popular among young urban parents. To remedy the situation Maclaren is offering free hinge covers to protect children. Maclaren is offering a free repair kit to be ordered from the website; however parents are finding it difficult to order the kit because of excess site volume. Maclaren is doing the best they can to repair their public image and stresses that parents stop using all of their make and model folding strollers until they receive a repair kit.

If you believe that your child has been harmed by a defective stroller please contact our experienced child safety attorneys to discuss your potential products liability case today.