| SAN ANTONIO, May 16 (UPI) -- The Texas Fourth Court of Appeals overturned a $7.75 million verdict against Merck & Co. in a lawsuit over the heart risk of the painkiller Vioxx. SAVE MONEY ON TRAVEL DEALS The court ruled there was insufficient evidence linking the painkiller to a fatal heart attack suffered by the plaintiff's spouse, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. Felicia Garza of Rio Grande City, Texas, sued Merck, alleging that Vioxx caused her 71-year-old husband, Lionel, to suffer a fatal heart attack. A jury awarded her $32 million in 2006, but the award was later reduced to $7.75 million. The Fourth Court of Appeals said the plaintiffs failed to negate, "with reasonable certainty, Mr. Garza's pre-existing heart condition as a plausible cause of his death." Vioxx was pulled from the market in 2004 after it was linked to an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Related News Topics:
News of Texas
Top news from around the world
Non-U.S. laws and lawsuits
Disease, medicine, health care research
Social issues
Miscellaneous science and technology stories
Disease, medicine, aids, health care research
|
