Sarah Mirando  |  February 13, 2013

Category: Pharmaceuticals

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Stronger Label Warning Increases Yaz Lawsuit Filings

By Christina Drury

 

Yaz Yasmin blood clotsThere has been substantial growth in the amount of lawsuits filed by women alleging they suffered from blood clots and other various complications as a result of the oral contraceptive known as Yaz.

This increase in Yaz lawsuits came on the heels of a stronger label warning being ordered by the FDA in April of 2012. A statistics report from July 2012 revealed the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation declared the total number of cases in the MDL against Yaz had risen to 8,825 pending lawsuits. This incredibly high numbers makes the Yaz MDL one of the largest product liability mass torts in the United States. The new warning label states that there have been some studies that revealed those taking products containing drospirenone, like Yaz and Yasmin, have an increased risk of blood clots that is at least three times higher than those taking a different oral contraceptive.

Despite Known Risks, FDA Chose Not to Recall Yaz

In December of 2011, an FDA advisory panel met and evaluated the evidence that Yaz was causing blood clots. After hearing testimonies on the issues and a debate amongst the 26-member panel, the FDA chose not to recall the oral contraceptive. Although the FDA perpetrated a study that revealed that women taking drospirenone birth control pills, such as Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella, had a significantly higher risk of their bodies developing a blood clot than those women who had taken birth control pills without the controversial ingredient, the final vote of the FDA panel was 15 to 11 in favor of keeping the contraceptives on the market. The FDA decided that the benefits of the oral contraceptive outweighed the risks. Following this decision, the panel put forth another vote of 21 to 5 in favor of adding a stronger warning label about the risk of blood clots.

Decision to Keep Yaz on the Market Incites Protests

In March 2012, FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg received a joint letter of protest from four different women’s advocacy groups insisting that the decision to keep drospirenone birth control pills on the market puts women’s lives in danger. The letter also criticized studies that were conducted by the FDA that did not find an increased risk of blood clots from drospirenone were funded by Bayer or other similar contraceptive manufacturers. The women’s advocacy groups concluded that these studies were therefore not objective, nor were they reliable. Another controversy arose when it was later discovered that four of the twenty-six panelists had connections to contraceptive manufacturers. This conflict of interest brought about a request from a U.S. watchdog group asking the FDA to hold another vote on whether drospirenone birth control pills should be recalled.

Join the Litigation Against Yaz

There have been over 12,400 Yaz injury lawsuits filed as of October 2012. These women have alleged that they have suffered side effects such as blood clots, deep vein thrombosis, stroke and pulmonary embolism. If you or a loved one has taken a drospirenone contraceptive and has suffered from any severe complications or side effects, you have be eligible to receive compensation. For more information and to receive legal advice, please visit our Yaz/Yasmin, Beyaz & Ocella Birth Control Pill Class Action Lawsuit Settlement & Investigation page.

 

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Updated February 13th, 2013

 

All medical device, dangerous drug and medical class action and lawsuit news updates are listed in the Drug and Medical Device section of Top Class Actions.

 

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