If you haven’t already filed a products liability complaint against Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals for injuries sustained from taking either Yaz or Yasmin birth control pills, you should contact our drug injury lawyers at Altman & Altman LLP right away. Already, thousands of women in the US alone are suing for damages and more lawsuits are expected.
The bestselling Yaz, touted as the “fourth-generation” pill, has also been marketed as a treatment for acne, bloating, and premenstrual dysphoric disorder, and for a few years, Bayer spent over $270 million promoting Yaz. The popular contraceptive saw its sales decline, however, in the wake of reports and complaints linking it to a high risk of blood clots and the potentially deadly side effects of stroke, heart attack, high cholesterol, gallbladder disease, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, and sudden cardiac death. Also, in 2009, the US Food and Drug Administration forced the pharmaceutical company to spend $20 million on ads revising the contraception’s off-label marketing and other claims. (Even though last year the FDA advisory board voted that Yaz’s benefits outweigh its risks, the Project on Governmental Oversight, a watchdog group, disputed the vote, contending that more than one of the board’s members has financial links to Bayer.)
The potentially deadly side effects of Yaz and Yasmin are being blamed in part on drosperinone, a chemical in the pills that behaves like a diuretic and creates fluid loss, which in turn lowers the sodium in the blood and ups potassium levels. This can cause blood pooling, blood clots, stroke, and heart attack.
Filing Your Yasmin/Yaz Lawsuit
Over the thousands of cases over Yaz /Yasmin against Bayer, only several dozen of them have been settled so far. Many of the plaintiffs filing Yaz lawsuits are accusing Bayer of failing to warn of the injury risks involved in taking the drug. The drug injury lawsuits for Yasmin and Yaz are now consolidated in the Multi-District Litigation in Illinois’s Southern District. However, it is important to note that unlike a regular class action, in an MDL, each plaintiff has his/her individual claim. (The separate Yaz and Yasmin complaints, however, are consolidated for the pre-trial portion of each case.)
Building a solid dangerous drug lawsuit takes time, which is why the sooner you start exploring your legal options and signing up with an experienced Yaz/Yasmin law firm the better. Products liability lawsuits are generally complex and you want to work with a team that knows what it is doing.
FDA Drug Safety Communication: Updated information about the risk of blood clots in women taking birth control pills containing drospirenone, FDA, April 10, 2012
Two New Studies in the British Medical Journal Find That Bayer’s Yaz and Yasmin Birth Control Pills Have an Increased Risk of Blood Clot, Reuters, April 22, 2011
Boston Dangerous Drug Lawsuits: YAZ, Ocella, and Yasmin Birth Control Pills Linked to Deep Vein Thrombosis, Pulmonary Embolism, Stroke, Heart Attack, and Myocardial Infarction Side Effects, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, June 19, 2012
Massachusetts Dangerous Drug?: Women Affected by Yaz Birth Control May Have Grounds for Lawsuit, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, March 26, 2011
At Altman & Altman, LLP, we understand the urgency of obtaining damages for the harm that you or your loved one has suffered. We are not afraid to after even the largest drug companies in the world.