As Maryland Pharmacy Misfill Attorneys, we have been following the recent verdict in which $2.5 million in damages were awarded to a Montgomery, Alabama woman and her husband, who claimed to be victims of a Rite Aid Pharmacy prescription misfill.
According to the lawsuit filed in 2008, Reva Tosh received a prescription for a pain medication on November 11, 2006. When Tosh dropped off the prescription to the Rite Aid pharmacy two days later, the pharmacist misfilled the order with the steroid dexamethasone—a steroid with severe side effects often prescribed during cancer treatments.
Rite Aid Pharmacy allegedly gave Tosh more than seven times the regular dosage of the steroids for a period of 28 days, and she claimed to have developed a disorder of the adrenal glands called Cushing’s Syndrome, that caused her to suffer physical ailments, personal injury, and mental disorders, that confined her to a wheelchair.
During the trial, the the central issue was whether Tosh’s injuries were caused by the pharmacy misfill, or due to her preexisting illness of rheumatoid arthritis.
Reva Tosh was awarded $2 million in damages by the jury, and her husband Gerald Tosh received $500,000 for the his loss of her companionship.
Rite Aid allegedly stated that it would not attempt to appeal the verdict, but that the damages awarded to Tosh were too high for the suffering that she endured. After the pharmacy error accident, Rite Aid retrained the entire staff at the pharmacy.
At Lebowitz & Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers, our attorneys are committed to making sure that pharmacy misfill victims and their loved ones receive the personal injury compensation they deserve in the Washington D.C. area, and in Maryland. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Rite Aid to Pay $2.5 M for Drug Mix-up, Montgomery Advertiser, January 27, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Institute for Safe Medication Practices, (ISMP)
Institute of Medicine, (IOM)