Yaz by the Numbers: the Warning, the Recall, the Profit, the Lawsuits
May 12th, 2010. By Kristine B
As Bayer adds new warnings to its birth control pills in the wake of lawsuits regarding Yaz and Yasmin, we thought it would be a good idea to break Yasmin and Yaz down by the numbers.
2001: The year Yasmin came on the market
2006: The year Yaz came on the market
2008: The year Bayer (maker of Yasmin and Yaz) received a warning from the FDA about overstating the pills’ effectiveness while minimizing their risks
2008: The year Ocella receives FDA approval; Ocella is the generic version of Yaz that is manufactured by Barr, which is owned by Teva
2009: The year Bayer launches new $20 million ad campaign to address the FDA’s warning
2009: The year the FDA issued a recall on certain lots of Yaz and Ocella for “Out of Specification analytical value for chemical assays of drospirenone and ethinyl estradiol was averaged with another analytical value to provide a reported result that was within specification.”
2010: The year Bayer added new warnings about the risks of blood clots linked to Yasmin and Yaz
1,100: Approximate number of lawsuits filed against Bayer regarding Yasmin and Yaz
$1.64 billion: Approximate profit Bayer reportedly made from Yasmin and Yaz during 2009
993: Number of reports the FDA received by November, 2009, of cases of pulmonary embolism linked to Yaz or Yasmin
487: Number of reports the FDA received of deep vein thrombosis
229: Number of reports the FDA received of other blood clots
800: Number of Canadians who have joined class-action lawsuits against Bayer
50: Number of women who reportedly died after taking Yaz, as of July, 2009
6.3: The number of times the risk of developing a blood clot is increased in women who take Yasmin or Yaz, according to a study in the British Medical Journal.
Note: Bayer has defended the birth control pills, saying they are safe and effective.
All stats taken from the FDA.gov, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Calgary Herald, BusinessWeek, The Bulletin (Philadelphia) and WISH tv, in addition to the British Medical Journal.
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