Bayer Still Facing Thousands of Birth Control Lawsuits

The risk of blood clots and related conditions like deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism were well researched and documented in what was considered “third-generation” birth control pills (the kind rampantly available throughout the 90s).

However, when Bayer’s Yasmin hit the market, some chemical differences got it off on a technicality. It was a fourth-generation contraception, and supposedly (according to marketing tactics) was a safer alternative complete with extra good side effects like clearer skin and a better sex life. Years later, thousands of women have come forward to sue Bayer, alleging that Yasmin and Yaz caused dangerous blood clots that severely injured them.

The Yasmin packaging, according to these lawsuits, didn’t properly warn about the still relevant risks of blood clots from the birth control pills. One of the most recent women to sue Bayer, Oregon resident Meghan Kelley, filed her Yasmin lawsuit on Nov. 1, 2013 after being hospitalized with a close fatal call.

Kelly “was prescribed and purchased and ingested the prescription contraceptive medication product titled Yaz/Yasmin (hereinafter Yaz/Yasmin) and suffered from a pulmonary embolism on or about November 2011, as a proximate and direct result of using Yaz/Yasmin,” her lawsuit states.

The history of oral contraception and blood clots is a lengthy one. “Shortly after the introduction of combined oral contraceptives in the 1960’s, doctors and researchers found that women using birth control pills had a higher risk of blood clots, heart attacks, and strokes than women not using the pill. As a result, the various brands of birth control pills were reformulated to reduce the amounts of estrogen. As the amounts of estrogen levels reduced, so too did the risk of blood clots, heart attacks, and strokes,” the Yaz lawsuit states.

This history is something Yasmin didn’t escape. According to Kelley’s lawsuit, “Yaz and Yasmin contain the same estrogen component, ethinyl estradiol, which has been used in the lower dose birth control pills for decades. However, drospirenone is a new type of progestin and is considered a “fourth generation” progestin. No other birth control pills contain drospirenone, except for a recently approved generic version of Yaz/Yasmin marketed under the trade name Ocella.

“Since drospirenone is new, there is insufficient data available to support its safe use, particularly compared with second generation progestins. In fact, studies performed prior to FDA approval indicate that drospirenone has certain effects that are different from those of traditional second generation progestins, and potentially more dangerous.”

Bayer aggressively marketed Yasmin as the ultimate contraception when it became available in 2001, and then again when the close cousin Yaz was introduced in 2006.

“As a result of Defendants’ claims regarding the effectiveness, safety and effectiveness of Yaz/Yasmin, Plaintiff’s medical provider prescribed and Plaintiff began using Yaz/Yasmin in or about August 2008. As a direct and proximate result of using Yaz/Yasmin, Plaintiff suffered a pulmonary embolism in or about November 2011, resulting in ongoing physical pain, significant changes in lifestyle, medical, health, incidental and related expenses, medical monitoring and/or medications, and the fear of developing additional health consequences,” Kelley’s Yaz lawsuit states.

Women as young as 17 have died from Yasmin complications. “Prior to Plaintiff’s use of Yaz/Yasmin the Bayer Defendants knew or should have known that use of Yaz/Yasmin created a higher risk of stroke than other oral contraceptives on the market, including but not limited to second generation oral contraceptives, and that, when taken as directed, such use was unreasonably dangerous to consumers.”

Hidden Risks

The basis for the growing number of Yasmin lawsuits is that Bayer knew about the risks related to Yaz, but the drug was so profitable that the company chose to downplay them. According to Kelley’s Yasmin lawsuit,  “Had Plaintiff and/or her health care providers known the risks and dangers associated with Yaz/Yasmin she would not have used Yaz/Yasmin and would not have suffered a pulmonary embolism in or about November 2011.”

Kelley is suing Bayer for defective manufacturing, design defect, defect due to inadequate warning, negligence, fraud, breach of warranties, and violation of applicable state consumer fraud and deceptive business practices acts. “The foreseeable risks associated with the design or formulation of the Yaz/Yasmin birth control pills, include, but are not limited to, the fact that the design or formulation of Yaz/Yasmin is more dangerous than a reasonably prudent consumer would expect when used in an intended or reasonably foreseeable manner,” reads Kelley’s Yaz claim.

“As a direct and proximate result of her use of Yaz/Yasmin, Plaintiff suffered physical injury, including but not limited to, conscious pain and suffering, as a result of a pulmonary embolism.”

The case is Meghan Kelley v. Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc., MDL No. 2100, in the United States District Court Southern District of Illinois.

Legal Help for Yasmin/Yaz Blood Clot Victims

If you or a loved one took Yaz, Yasmin or another drospirenone birth control pill and were diagnosed with a venous blood clot injury such as deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism, you may be eligible to take legal action against the drug manufacturer. Filing a product liability lawsuit may help you obtain compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering and other damages. Learn more and obtain a free case evaluation at the Yaz, Yasmin, Beyaz & Ocella Birth Control Class Action Lawsuit Investigation.