PA Prescription Drugs Lawyers

Modern medicine has given us cures to diseases and conditions that would have been a death sentence a century ago. When your doctor prescribes a medication, you have every right to expect that it will make you better, not make you sicker. But in too many recent cases, drugs that were marketed as a cure caused new diseases or injuries -- and even killed some users -- because of inadequate testing or manufacturing safeguards by drug makers.

At Munley Munley & Cartwright, PC, we are experienced in pursuing product liability claims against big pharmaceutical manufacturers who have put dangerous products on the market. If you or a loved one has been injured by a dangerous drug, contact our Pennsylvania product liability attorneys online or call us at 1-800-318-LAW1 for a free consultation.

In recent years, several high-profile drugs have been withdrawn from the market because they’ve been found to be dangerous. Among them:

• Vioxx, an arthritis treatment, was withdrawn from the market in 2004 because of concerns about heart attack and stroke risks related to its use.
• Zelnorm, a drug for irritable bowel syndrome, was withdrawn in 2008 because of the risk of heart attack and stroke.
• The psoriasis drug Raptiva was removed from the marketplace in 2009 as a result of side effects that could lead to a rare but fatal brain infection.
• The blood thinner, Heparin, was recalled in 2008 after a contaminated batch killed more than 90 users and sickened hundreds more.

Other medications remain on the market despite widely recognized risks. For example, the anti-smoking drug, Chantix, remains in use even though it has been linked with suicides and is the subject of numerous lawsuits.

Despite regulation at the federal level, therapeutic drugs are subject to the same Pennsylvania product liability laws that other ordinary household goods are.  This means that even if the manufacturers did not intend to cause harm or were not negligent in bring the drug to market, they still can be liable for the harm caused by the medication.

If you've been injured by a dangerous drug, you must prove that the product has an “unreasonably dangerous” defect, the defect caused injury even though you were using it as directed, and that you did not “substantially change” the product from the time of purchase. If those elements can be proven, you may be entitled to recover money for lost wages or medical bills, as well as you pain and suffering.

At Munley Munley & Cartwright, our PA product liability attorneys don’t think that Pennsylvania consumers should suffer after being harmed by a drug that drug makers said was safe. For a free consultation regarding your legal concerns, please submit your case online or call our Pennsylvania prescription drug attorneys at 1-800-318-LAW1.

At Munley, Munley & Cartwright, our goal is to provide exceptional legal services to our clients. We strive to achieve the highest standard of excellence for the protection of individual rights through teamwork and the use of our considerable resources and experience.