What to Do if You’ve Been Affected by Defective Over the Counter Drugs

More than 100 million Americans deal with some type of chronic pain. Over the counter pain medication plays a crucial role in advancing their quality of life. Without them, these Americans would likely face a very different set of circumstances in life.

And these drugs are everywhere: There are more than 100,000 over the counter drugs available to American consumers in their grocery store, corner shop and local pharmacies, according to the Federal Drug Administration. These 100,000 drugs consist of a combination of some 800 active ingredients, according to the FDA.

And, unfortunately, these drugs aren’t always helpful. During the last decade alone, more than 1,500 Americans died after inadvertently overdosing on common drug, acetaminophen, according to a report in Pro Publica. Tens of millions of people take acetaminophen weekly without any issues. But it is possible to overdose on acetaminophen, and it exists in many drugs available in stores nationwide. If taken in large amounts with frequency, and especially along with alcohol, it can damage or even destroy the liver, according to the Pro Publica report. These mistakes can be costly to your health and even ultimately deadly. It’s important to stay abreast of drug recalls and to read drug labels vigilantly before taking more than one medicine at a time.

Defective drugs

Human error isn’t always to blame for deaths as a result of taking over the counter medicines. Sadly, some over the counter drugs can cause serious harm and even death in some circumstances. Whether it’s a headache reliever, birth control drug or a general antibiotic, you should not be gravely injured as a result. If you are, you may be eligible to receive financial compensation. Some have faced blood clots, pulmonary embolism, birth defects, heart failure or strokes and other serious injuries as a result of defective drugs.

This can turn a family upside down and greatly change the future for those affected.

How can I decipher whether I’m eligible for compensation?

Manufacturers are liable for producing safe products that do what they say they will do. If they do not, they can be punished in court. Indeed, manufacturers have a duty to ensure their products are safe in the American marketplace. Drug manufacturers fall under this category, as well.

If you’ve been injured or lost a loved one as a result of a complication with a drug, you may be eligible to receive financial compensation. How do you know? If one or some of the following issues occurred in your situation, you may be eligible for financial compensation:

• The drug contained manufacturing defects, including failure to improperly list ingredients. This can occur in the bottling, shipping, or labeling of the drug.
• The drug was not properly tested before distribution in the marketplace, thus leaving some open to serious side effects not listed on the bottle.
• The drug did not provide adequate instructions or warnings.

Common drugs

Some of the drugs that have been involved in this type of litigation in the past include:

• Accutane
• Boniva
• Lexapro
• Lipitor
• Nexium
• NuvaRing
• Paxil
• Prilosec
• Risperdal
• Wellbutrin
• Zoloft

This is just a partial listing; you can view more here.

Have you been injured by a defective drug?

If you believe you’ve been injured by a defective drug, contact the attorneys at Boone & Davis in Fort Lauderdale, Florida today. We have more than 40 years of experience helping victims of defective drugs and are prepared to begin working on your case immediately.