Recently disclosed federal court filings have revealed settlement agreements between the U.S. Government and PhyAmerica Corp, a Louisville, Kentucky company that is the nation’s second-largest operator of institutional pharmacies. One of the lawsuits focused on the company’s widespread misuse of Depakote, a seizure drug. According to one news source, the complaint alleged the drug was routinely being prescribed to elderly patients off label to treat other ailments that would have been better treated with the approved medications.
According to the article, the company was allegedly encouraging doctors to prescribe the drug to patients off-label because of an agreement with the drug manufacturer that gave the defendant financial kickbacks for prescribing Depakote. These were kickbacks that they would not have gotten for prescribing drugs that were approved to treat the underlying conditions.
The vast majority of the patients being misprescribed the drugs had their care being financed by the federal government through Medicare and didn’t notice the increased costs, although Pharmerica Corp. allegedly helped to defraud the government out of billions of dollars by encouraging the prescription of Depakote off label.
This lawsuit is demonstrative of a larger problem in the American medical system. The problem is that to many companies in the medical industry, profits come before patients. It can seem that hospitals and insurance companies and drug companies and sometimes even doctors don’t truly care about the consequences of their actions to the patient unless it affects their bottom line. This focus on profit often causes medical service providers to make decisions that injure innocent patients.
When a patient is hurt by the professional negligence of a medical provider, whether it be on the large-scale drug company level or a case of the malpractice of a single doctor, they are entitled to compensation for the damages related to the mistake. Patients who are the victim of medical malpractice can file a Maryland medical malpractice lawsuit against the offending parties, and they can collect damages if they can prove that they were injured by actions of the medical provider that were not up to the professional standard of care for medical professionals in the field.
Patients can be reimbursed for the increased medical bills resulting from the malpractice, as well as lost wages, pain and suffering, and even special damages against some medical providers when the defendant had an especially culpable state of mind in committing the malpractice.
Have You Been the Victim of a Medical Professional’s Negligence?
A Maryland medical malpractice lawsuit or pharmacy error lawsuit can be a difficult endeavor to undertake. Doctors, hospitals, and pharmacists have insurance that protects them from liability for malpractice, and the insurance companies have extremely skilled legal teams that have made decades-long careers out of defending medical malpractice claims. Without the help of a dedicated and qualified plaintiff’s medical malpractice attorney, victims take the risk that they will accept an insufficient settlement or be surprised in court, and leave without obtaining any compensation.
If you think that you or a loved one has been the victim of medical malpractice, the experienced attorneys at Lebowitz & Mzhen can help you with your case. We have represented clients in all types of malpractice actions against many kinds of defendants. Our malpractice lawyers put our clients first, and if you retain us on your case we will advocate for what you deserve. We represent clients in most medical malpractice and negligence actions, including pharmacy errors. Call us at 410-654-3600 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.
More Blog Posts:
Woman Hospitalized for “Poisoning” After Pharmacist’s Error, Pharmacy Error Injury Lawyer Blog, February 23, 2015.
California Costco Pharmacy Mis-Fills One Patient’s Prescription Twice in One Year, Pharmacy Error Injury Lawyer Blog, January 22, 2015.