The parents of a promising law student who died of a heart attack after using a contraceptive allegedly linked to hundreds of deaths have vowed to sue its manufacturer at any cost after rejecting a $100million settlement.
Erika Langhart, 24, was preparing to begin law school at Georgetown University, in Washington D. C., when she collapsed and died of a massive pulmonary embolism in 2011.
When doctors rang her parents, back in Phoenix, Arizona, to inform them of the tragic news, the first thing they wanted to know was if she had been using NuvaRing - a hormonal contraceptive that is facing more than 4,000 lawsuits and may be linked to 224 deaths.
'The doctor asked if she was on birth control then what type,' mother Karen told CNN. 'I said she was on birth control and it was the NuvaRing. He said there was a link between NuvaRing and pulmonary embolisms.'
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Tragic: 24-year-old Erika Langhart died from a heart attack that health officials believe was caused by the birth-control device NuvaRing
'I learned more from her than she ever learned from me - she was an amazing young lady,' father Rick said of his daughter, who worked for two United States senators after graduating from college, including Arizona Senator John McCain.
NuvaRing is a hormonal contraceptive inside a flexible ring that is inserted in the vagina and left in place for three weeks out of every month.
The ring slowly releases two hormones into the vaginal wall: ethinyl estradiol, a type of estrogen that is widely used in contraceptives, and a progestin called etonogestrel. Merck has been selling NuvaRing since 2002.
But since 2007, Merck - the pharmaceutical company that makes NuvaRing - has been facing lawsuits from patients and families of women who suffered problems including heart attacks and strokes and even death using NuvaRing.
Potentially fatal: The NuvaRing - a hormonal contraceptive inside a flexible ring that is inserted in the vagina and left in place for three weeks out of every month - has been linked to 224 deaths across the globe
Heartbroken: Langhart's parents, Rick and Karen Langahrt, are on a crusade to force more descriptive warning labels on NuvaRing
Among them are Karen and Rick who have vowed to bring Merck to justice, despite the offer of $100million to drop the case.
'It was never about money,' Erika's father Rick added. 'It was about trying to hold Merck responsible.'
NUVARING: A LONG CONTROVERSY
NuvaRing is a hormonal contraceptive inside a flexible ring that is inserted in the vagina and left in place for three weeks out of every month.
The ring slowly releases two hormones into the vaginal wall: ethinyl estradiol, a type of estrogen that is widely used in contraceptives, and a progestin called etonogestrel. Merck has been selling NuvaRing since 2002.
However, severe side effects have been reported including blood clots, strokes, heart attacks, high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer of the reproductive organs and breast.
Since 2007, Merck has been facing lawsuits from patients and families of women who suffered problems including heart attacks and strokes and even death using NuvaRing and has offered a $100million settlement to the plaintiffs, who say Merck downplayed the product's side effects.
Merck said the agreement will resolve all U.S. litigation over the product as well as covering some patients who are eligible to bring a lawsuit against the company but haven't yet filed suit.
Nevertheless, Merck said it is not acknowledging any fault.
The Whitehouse Station, N.J., company, said there were about 1,715 lawsuits related to NuvaRing as of September 30.
The company reported $686 million in revenue from NuvaRing in 2013, up 10 percent from the previous year. That was less than 2 percent of Merck's total sales
More than 4,000 plaintiffs, who include Karen and her husband Rick, said Merck downplayed the product's side effects.
In the United States alone, there are 1,715 lawsuits filed against Merck over NuvaRing - and 224 deaths that may be linked to the drug.
Earlier this year, Merck agreed to pay $100 million to settle all the lawsuits - a settlement the Langharts have rejected.
Merck said the agreement will resolve all U.S. litigation over the product.
The settlement will also cover some patients who are eligible to bring a lawsuit against the company but haven't yet filed suit. Merck said it isn't acknowledging any fault. The Whitehouse Station, N.J., company, said there were about 1,715 lawsuits related to NuvaRing as of Sept. 30.
Severe side effects allegedly connected to NuvaRing include blood clots, strokes and heart attacks, high blood pressure and heart disease, and cancer of the reproductive organs and breast.
The company reported $686 million in revenue from NuvaRing in 2013, up 10 percent from the previous year. That was less than 2 percent of Merck's total sales.
After rejecting the settlement, the Langharts took their story to Capitol Hill - and their complaints to the Food and Drug Administration.
The couple feels that the pharmaceutical giant doesn't provide proper warnings that the NuvaRing could potentially kill you, and they're battling the FDA to try and get the drug regulatory agency to force Merck to use a 'blackbox warning,' which indicates a product could potentially kill those who use it.
The FDA, however, doesn't feel the warning is necessary.
'We think Merck has control over the FDA,' Karen Langhart said. 'We think they have undue influence within the FDA.'
Doctors across the country - like Dr. Eric Gunderson - have no problem prescribing the NuvaRing, despite the warning.
Successful: Langhart (center) had worked for two U.S. senators and was about to begin law school at Georgetown
'The NuvaRing does have labeling showing that compared to taking nothing you will have increased risk of blood clots,' Gunderson told 3TV. 'Trying to say that it is more dangerous than other contraceptive pills is getting into a gray area.'
In a statement, Merck addressed the concerns posed by the Langharts and others who had family members allegedly hurt or killed by the birth control device.
'Nothing is more important to Merck than the safety of our medicines and vaccines and the people who use them. Merck employees, and our families, use Merck medicines, too,' the company says in the statement.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2645864/Birth-control-killed-daughter-Parents-vow-continue-fight-against-NuvaRing-makers-REJECTING-100million-settlement.html#ixzz33WTnr23o
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