Prilosec Lawsuit

As of June 2023, the results of the first bellwether test trial in the proton pump inhibitor MDL has yet to conclude. This test trial is for James Rieder. Rieder took Nexium, not Prilosec, but outcomes in this trial will affect trials and settlements in Prilosec lawsuits as well.

So far, there have been no global settlements or jury verdicts in the MDL. This MDL contains mostly Prilosec and Nexium lawsuits, along with a smaller number of claims about Prevacid.

• May 2023: About 12,949 remain pending in the MDL out of 18,663 originally filed. Some cases have been dismissed.

• May 2023: Judge Cecchi held a status conference, but the transcript of that conference was not made available to the public.
• March 2023: As of March 2023, a total of 13,195 federal lawsuits were pending in the proton pump inhibitor MDL in New Jersey.
• February 2023: Judge Claire C. Cecchi rescheduled the Rieder bellwether test trial from March 2023 to June 5, 2023 “or 30 days after the Court decides summary judgment and Daubert motions, whichever is later.” Bellwether two will start July 17, 2023, and bellwether three will start Sept.18 2023.
• January 2023: Judge Cecchi set a deadline for Plaintiffs to add Pfizer as a defendant in their complaints.
• January 2023: There is settlement speculation. But the litigation continues to move forward for the over 13,000 PPI cases in the MDL class action lawsuit and many others in state court.
• June 2022: Cases in the Nexium and Prilosec MDL are up to 13,000. Lawyers expect the first PPI bellwether trial of James Rieder in September 2022.  Trial two and three will follow through March 2023.

Judge Cecchi originally scheduled the Rieder bellwether test trial for September 2022. It was moved to March 2023 and then moved to June 2023.

Prilosec lawyers say the delay could be related to global settlement negotiations.

Plaintiffs are filing Prilosec lawsuits against drugmakers AstraZeneca and Procter & Gamble because consumers claim the drug caused them to develop serious kidney injuries. Plaintiffs who took prescription or over-the-counter Prilosec say the manufacturers knew of the risk of kidney injuries but failed to warn the public.

These and other PPI lawsuits say the medications are defective and unreasonably dangerous. Other claims include negligence, breach of warranty and misleading consumers. In their legal claims, people say drugmakers knew as early as 2004 that Prilosec, Nexium and other proton pump inhibitors could cause kidney injuries.

People filing Prilosec lawsuits, Nexium lawsuits and other proton pump inhibitor lawsuits are suing to get compensation for their kidney injuries. A Prilosec settlement or jury verdict in favor of the claimants could cover the cost of financial damage from lost wages, medical bills and pain and suffering.

Does Prilosec Cause Cancer?

Recent medical studies suggest that long-term use of proton pump inhibitors, including Prilosec, may increase the risk of gastric cancer and other cancers. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not issued an official warning of possible risks or made a definitive decision about evidence.

A 2022 study published in BMJ’s Gut journal found that Prilosec and other PPIs were associated with a 45% increased risk of gastric cancer compared to using histamine-2 receptor antagonists like Pepcid. But another 2022 study in Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics found no increased risk of gastric cancer. And another 2022 study in American Journal of Clinical Oncology found PPI use increased the risk of gastric cancer, pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer and liver cancer.

People who took brand-name Prilosec for acid reflux disease or persistent heartburn and then developed an acute kidney injury or chronic kidney disease may qualify to file a Prilosec claim. Prescription and over-the-counter Prilosec are included in ongoing lawsuits, but lawyers are not accepting generic drug claims at this time. 

If you were hospitalized or have chronic kidney disease, keep your medical records to document it. If you took Prilosec for one year or more, you may have a stronger legal case. Only an attorney can tell you if you qualify. Speak to a Prilosec lawyer as soon as possible because time limits apply to filing a claim.

The FDA released several safety warnings about Prilosec and other proton pump inhibitors, but neither it nor drugmakers recalled Prilosec.

Manufacturers in 2019 issued a recall of popular heartburn medication Zantac. A year later, the FDA ordered all products containing ranitidine off the U.S. market. Prilosec and other PPIs were not a part of this recall.

In addition to these official warnings, the FDA is investigating reports of erectile dysfunction, acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis, rhabdomyolysis and other potential health conditions associated with Prilosec and other PPIs.

The agency hasn’t decided whether it will take regulatory action or add any warnings to the drugs’ labels.

Some Prilosec lawyers estimate a Prilosec settlement may be worth anywhere from $20,000 to $150,000 per plaintiff, depending on the severity of the injuries. As of January 2023, no Prilosec claims were settled.

However, AstraZeneca has had to pay millions of dollars to settle kickback scheme allegations related to Prilosec and Nexium. On Feb. 11, 2015, the Department of Justice announced that AstraZeneca agreed to pay $7.9 million to settle allegations of kickback scheme violations.

The DOJ alleged that AstraZeneca gave price cuts to Medco Health Solutions on popular drugs, including Prilosec, in exchange for “Medco maintaining Nexium’s ‘sole and exclusive’ status on certain Medco formularies and through other marketing activities related to those Medco formularies.” The whistleblowers were former AstraZeneca employees, Paul DiMattia and F. Folger Tuggle, who received $1,422,000 of the settlement proceeds.