A Maryland couple has filed a wrongful death suit against a drug manufacturer, claiming that their newborn daughter died because of complications from the medication Zoloft.
The baby died when she was just three days old, reportedly sustaining birth defects because her mother ingested the anti-depressant medication during her pregnancy. The drug manufacturer named in the products liability suit failed to adequately test the effects of the medication on pregnant women, according to reports, which caused the girl’s untimely death in March 2010.
The baby, known only as “M.C.” in court documents, was born with high-risk birth defects, including problems with her reproductive, circulatory and respiratory tracts. Pfizer, the drug manufacturer, and its wholly owned subsidiary, Greenstone, were both implicated in the girl’s death, which was caused by these congenital defects. The baby was transported to a specialist center in Washington, D.C., shortly after her birth. She was placed on life support, but her parents opted to remove the devices and allow her to pass away naturally.
Attorneys report that the companies failed to discourage pregnant women from consuming the medication. In fact, most pregnant women are still kept in the dark about the dangers of Zoloft and its related drugs, according to the suit. Women of childbearing age should be informed about the dangers of the medication, but physicians are indirectly pressured by the companies to prescribe these products.
In other words, this suit is not only designed to provide financial relief for the family in question, but it also seeks to improve information distribution and accuracy from Pfizer itself. The results of the suit could save countless lives.
The family is suing the drug-makers for breach of warranty, negligence, fraud and a variety of other counts. The girl’s parents contend that they suffered great emotional distress because of their daughter’s illness and subsequent death. They are seeking compensatory and punitive damages in connection with the case, along with litigation costs, interests and attorneys’ fees.
Source: The Pennsylvania Record, “Maryland couple files Zoloft wrongful death claim in U.S. District Court in Phila.,” Jon Campisi, Feb. 20, 2013