This was but one of thousands of Prempro cases that has kept the Pfizer legal team busy. In an SEC filing in May, the company said it had set aside $300 million to cover pending litigation.
The highest previous Prempro award was $58 million in a Nevada case involving three women. Pfizer appealed that verdict to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the court decided in June not to hear the case, thereby leaving in place the monetary decision and that of the Nevada State Supreme Court.
By Bloomberg's scorekeeping, Pfizer's Wyeth and Upjohn units have now lost 10 of the 18 Prempro cases decided by juries since trials began in 2006.
Some of the awards were later reduced or thrown out after the juries made their decisions.
"Of all trial-set hormone therapy cases that have been resolved for either party, 44 have been resolved in the company's favor through a combination of rulings by judges, jury verdicts, and dismissals by plaintiffs themselves to avoid going to trial," Pfizer said in its statement. "Nine juries have found for Wyeth, including six of the last eight; and there are eight final judgments for Wyeth. While eight plaintiffs' verdicts are in effect, five are not final, as they are being or will be challenged by the company as legally deficient. Additionally, more than 3,000 other cases have been dismissed or withdrawn before even being set for trial."
Contact staff writer David Sell at dsell@phillynews.com or 215-854-4506. Read his blog at www.philly.com/phillypharma and on Twitter @phillypharma.
