Lauren Betancourt is infamously responsible for the recall of thousands of defective birth control pills packages, after winning a five million dollar lawsuit against Qualitest Pharmaceuticals in 2011. Lauren claims that she had been religiously following her birth control regimen—as prescribed on the packaging—for several months before she began noticing changes to her body. Typically, birth control pills are packaged in a specific order—beginning with twenty-one daily doses of hormone-blocking estrogen and ending with seven placebo, or sugar pills. According to Lauren, the placebo pills were packaged first, followed by the hormone-blocking estrogen pills—in reverse order. In Lauren’s testimony, she claimed that she did not notice the defective packaging, nor did she realize that she had conceived until after testing positive for pregnancy months later.
Lauren’s story later ignited a thrash of lawsuits against Qualitest Pharmaceuticals from more than 100 women, all claiming that the packaging on their birth control was defective, and had resulted in their unwanted pregnancies. Several of the affected women were including other varying personal injuries to their claim such as pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of capacity of the enjoyment of life, expensive health care and treatment, loss of earnings, and a loss of ability to earn money.
Bad Product/Bad Drug Laws in North Carolina
Each year, millions of people suffer from injuries related to pharmaceutical errors. Patients who are taking prescription drugs do so under the trust and care of their medical provider, whose responsibility is to diagnose your correct prescription and to explain possible side effects or adverse reactions. While your injuries may not be voluminous—as in the case of Lauren Betancourt—to the point where you are eligible to sue a major pharmaceutical company, you may be able to file a lawsuit against your doctor or pharmacy if they prescribed a dangerous drug that caused you harm. If you are suffering from injuries, or experiencing adverse effects related to your prescription drugs you may be eligible for compensation for your injuries.
Suing Your Doctor
North Carolina laws say that your doctor has a responsibility to maintain a high standard of care. If you are injured while under the care of your doctor, then your doctor is negligent in his or her duties to maintain those standards of care. In the case of a bad prescription drug, a lawsuit based on illness or injury caused by a doctor’s negligence in your prescribing medication, falls under the category of medical malpractice. For example, if your doctor failed to mention side effects, proper dosing instructions, or possible adverse reactions to the drug, he or she may be found negligent and can be forced to pay compensation for your injuries.
Contact a Personal Injury Attorney
If you are suffering from injuries while under the care of your doctor or experiencing adverse effects related to your prescription drugs, contact an experienced and professional Charlotte NC personal injury lawyer to learn about receiving compensation for your injuries. Located in Charlotte, at the law firm of Ted A. Greve & Associates, P.A. we will commit to your case and fight for you. Call us today, or fill out your free case evaluation form!
