Baycol
Baycol cholesterol drug was recalled from the market after reports
of 52 deaths were linked to the drug. Considered a newer statin,
Baycol has since faced numerous lawsuits because of the deaths
and serious Baycol side effects reported that has since been reported
to be over 100 deaths. Most of the Baycol lawsuits that have surfaced
sine the August 2001 withdrawal have been alleged instances of
rhabdomyolysis, a rare disease causing muscle damage, kidney failure,
and other effects including death. At the time of the Baycol recall,
416 cases of rhabdomyolysis had been made, including 31 deaths.
As of September 2003, Bayer had paid $477 million to settle out
of court 1,342 Baycol cases in the U.S. alone. While a Baycol
class action lawsuit was recently denied because of the diversity
of the Baycol cases, Bayer still has over 11,000 Baycol lawsuits
pending.
In October 2002, Public Citizen consumer group issued comments
in response to a study that had been performed showing a high
number of Baycol patients over one year after the Baycol recall
were still unaware that Baycol had been withdrawn. The consumer
group felt that in the instance of something so serious as a Baycol
recall, the FDA should have “statutory authority to order
and enforce recalls” and that Bayer “should pay for
patient notification” in order to ensure Baycol patients
are aware of changes.
Especially, since Baycol was linked to fatal adverse effects
like rhabdomyolysis, the advocacy group found it interesting that
just because Bayer underbid drug companies that had previously
been supplying statins to a particular large outpatient Illinois
clinic, Baycol was instead used. The switch to carry Baycol was
especially concerning since the previous three statins used at
the clinic were shown to be effective and reduce risk of mortality.
For more information on Baycol contact
us to confer with a Baycol lawyer.
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