Xarelto Litigation Continues to Grow

Los Angeles, CAThe number of claims involved in Xarelto side effects lawsuits continues to grow as the number of people coming forward with allegations of Xarelto bleeding complications also grows. Meanwhile, litigation concerning Xarelto moves forward, with more lawsuits joining the already established multidistrict litigation.

The number of Xarelto lawsuits has increased dramatically from the 33 that initially sat in the Xarelto multidistrict litigation (MDL 2592) as of December 15, 2014. Reports from May’s pending multidistrict litigation indicate there are now 434 lawsuits consolidated for pretrial proceedings before US District Judge Eldon E. Fallon, in the Eastern District for Louisiana.

The lawsuits allege patients were not adequately warned that Xarelto, unlike its predecessor warfarin, did not have an antidote. This allegedly put patients at risk of uncontrollable bleeding events. Warfarin, Xarelto and other anticoagulants are used to lower the risk of blood clots by preventing blood from coagulating. Warfarin, however, has an antidote in the form of vitamin K. Xarelto currently does not have an approved antidote.

One such lawsuit was filed by Mary Walker and others against Janssen Pharmaceuticals. This lawsuit not only alleges that patients were not warned about the risks associated with Xarelto, but that the defendants wrongly marketed Xarelto as a “one size fits all” drug that does not require medical monitoring. One of the drawbacks of warfarin is that patients on the older anticoagulant must have their blood regularly monitored to ensure it stays within therapeutic levels. Patients on newer anticoagulants, including Xarelto, were told they would not require medical monitoring.

“In essence, the Defendants have created a new drug, Xarelto, that is not better than Warfarin from a safety perspective, and at best, is only perhaps slightly easier to use and administer,” court documents state. It should be noted that Xarelto is also a more expensive medication. According to the same court documents, Xarelto costs approximately $3,000 a year, while generic warfarin costs $200.

The same lawsuit alleges that the Institute for Safe Medication Practices found 356 reports of injury linked to Xarelto, and researchers questioned whether once-a-day doses of Xarelto would adequately help a patient, since blood levels move through highs and lows throughout the day.

Walker’s lawsuit alleges the makers of Xarelto not only hid information that the drug could cause life-threatening bleeds, but also that they failed to warn about the lack of an antidote to reverse the effects of Xarelto. Walker also claims that Xarelto was marketed “with no regard to accuracy and repercussions of their misleading advertising in favor of increasing sales.”

Walker’s lawsuit is Mary Walker et al. v. Janssen Research & Development et al., case number 2:15-cv-01971.