Merck won the first test of Vioxx in a federal court, though the short-term nature of the plaintiff’s use probably made it one of the weaker cases facing the company.
Merck & Co.’s painkiller Vioxx wasn’t to blame for a Florida man’s fatal heart attack in 2001, a federal jury ruled today, the company’s second victory in lawsuits filed over the drug.
Jurors in New Orleans deliberated for three hours and 40 minutes before clearing Merck in the death of Richard “Dicky” Irvin, who had taken Vioxx for 23 days. The first trial in the case ended in a mistrial in Houston in December.
(”Merck wins retrial of first federal vioxx lawsuit”, Bloomberg, Feb 17). Ted Frank has more at Point of Law.
