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Drug liability: The Duty to Warn

As you can imagine, there are a lot of dangerous pharmaceutical drugs on the market right now. In most cases, the dangers associated with these drugs can be limited and patients will be aware of the risks they’re taking when they consume the medication. However, in other cases, drug manufacturers fail to warn patients of the risks they face when taking their drugs. When a drug company fails to warn like this, it could leave the drug maker financially liable for injuries that result.

According to the law, a pharmaceutical company must warn its customers about potential side effects and contraindications. Most drug companies will do this by labeling a prescription drug with warnings and advising prescribing physicians of potential consequences. However, it’s not unheard of for a drug company to refrain from advising its customers about dangers. In some situations, drug companies have even been known to hide information about dangers they were aware of — just so they could continue churning a profit from selling their dangerous products.

There are numerous drugs on the market right now that pose risks to consumers. For example, Zoloft is a drug physicians commonly prescribe for psychological conditions such as anxiety and post-traumatic stress syndrome. However, the drug has been shown to cause birth defects in the babies of pregnant mothers who take the medication.

If you believe that you or your loved one suffered a serious injury as a result of a dangerous drug, personal injury lawyer may be able to help. A lawyer, who is familiar with pharmaceutical drug litigation, can evaluate your injuries and offer you advice about your legal rights and options to seek financial restitution in court.

Source: FindLaw, “Pharmaceutical litigation,” accessed July 21, 2017