Jury Orders Vioxx Maker to Pay $51 Million to Heart Attack Victim

By Nathan Abbott

Published on August 21, 2006

The jury held that Merck intentionally misrepresented or failed to provide pertinent information about the arthritis drug to retired FBI agent Jerry Barnett and his doctors. The jurors also decided that Merck acted without regard for the plaintiff’s rights. They awarded Barnett $50 million in compensatory damages and $1 million in punitive damages.

In 2002, Barnett suffered a heart attack at age 58 after having taken Vioxx for 31 months. According to his attorney, Barnett worked to keep himself at as low a risk as possible for a heart attack through diet, exercise, and prescription drugs.

The lawsuit was originally filed in Barnett’s home state of South Carolina, but was moved to Louisiana because South Carolina allows plaintiffs to seek damages only for injuries that occurred within the state rather than anywhere in the country.

In a related case, a New Jersey judge overturned a pro-Merck verdict, granting a new trial to another Vioxx patient who claimed that Vioxx caused his heart attack. Merck currently faces over 14,000 Vioxx-related cases, with three more scheduled to go to trial this year.

Comment on this article →