Consumers have filed 500 lawsuits alleging Fosamax, a drug used to treat and prevent osteoporosis, caused thigh bone fractures
FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 12, 2023) – Attorney General Daniel Cameron joined a bipartisan coalition supporting individuals suing the pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. for injuries suffered while using the drug Fosamax, which is used to treat and prevent osteoporosis, a serious bone disease.
Over 500 lawsuits have been filed by those who used the osteoporosis drug between 1999 and 2010. The plaintiffs alleged they suffered atypical femur fractures from long-term use and said that Merck knew about the risk before finally adding it to warning labels in 2011.
The plaintiffs are appealing the U.S. District Court’s ruling that the claims of failure to warn of the risk of atypical femoral fractures were preempted because the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) rejected a warning label that discussed the risks of stress fractures—a risk totally different than the atypical femur fractures the plaintiffs suffered in this case.
Attorney General Cameron and the coalition write that the district court’s decision “risks undermining core principles of federalism and could prevent states from allowing their citizens to hold pharmaceutical companies to account for their actions.” The coalition goes on to say that “giving agency action the sort of sweeping preemptive effect that the District Court gave here threatens to shrink this important body of state consumer protection law.”
“Protecting Kentuckians of all 120 counties is my top priority, and that starts with taking action against those engaging in deceptive business practices,” said General Cameron. “I support Kentuckians’ ability to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable for their harmful actions and oppose any federal action that would rob Kentuckians of relief provided to them by Kentucky law.”
The following states joined Attorney General Cameron’s coalition: Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Virginia.