Monday, February 3, 2014

Johnson & Johnson fights to keep Risperdal documents under seal.

The FDA has issued warnings that boys and young men who have taken the drug Risperdal are at risk for gynecomastia.  So far, there have been about 450 lawsuits filed and J&J has paid billions to settle federal and state government claims involving the illegal marketing of the drug.

J&J is also trying to keep documents from being made public.  The company has asked a Pennsylvania state judge to keep confidential a series of clinical studies that were put under seal in 2011.

The plaintiffs claims that there is a tremendous public interest in the documents being public, that the documents are not proprietary, and that for the well-being of the public and for full and unfettered review by regulatory authorities and healthcare providers, they should be made public.