Image from Online Journal
Even though the verdict regarding punitive damages awarded to Connie Barton in her suit against Prempro was sealed (as we wrote last week), the figure has leaked out. A Philadelphia jury awarded her $75 million in punitive damages, in addition to $3.7 million in compensation for her trouble. Although Pfizer/Wyeth will surely appeal, it’s a substantial victory to see punitive damages in an amount that is more than 20 times the compensatory damages. The jury found Wyeth’s conduct in marketing and selling the drug was “willful and wanton,” and put their money where their mouth is.
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Anyone know whether anyone from WHI has responded to any of this? Just curious…
Heather, I haven’t seen anything from WHI about the lawsuits, but a study was recently released with new analysis of the data. (Medscape requires free registration.) Defenders of hormone therapy have suggested that the risks occur when Prempro® (or other brand) is taken more than five years after menopause. The newest findings state that both estrogen-alone HT and estrogen/progestin HT adversely affected risk for CHD, stroke, and venous thromboembolism, regardless of whether they were initiated <5 years or ≥5 years after menopause.
So much for the “timing hypothesis”, eh?