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The Mass Tort Muser Ponders Yaz Lawsuits

October 26th, 2010. By Mass Tort Muser

Yaz (and its sib, Yasmin) has been under fire over the past couple of years. Hell hath no fury, right? And there are definitely some women out there feeling a bit scorned by big pharma on this one…

But talk about the pendulum swinging back in the opposite direction. It wasn’t all that long ago that we (women, that is) were ecstatic that finally, yes finally, there was a mere pill—such a teeny tiny helper!—that could save us from unwanted pregnancy and that God-forsaken monthly interruption—cramps and all. (Insert a “Right-on!” shout-out to Ms. Steinem, women’s lib and a few burnt bras…).

Fast-forward almost forty years…and the pill delivers zit relief, too—our cup runneth over! Breakout banisher is basically how Yaz positioned itself on center stage of the contraception market—and how it netted not only a whole new generation of pretty young things as groupies but also a wrist-slap from the FDA. Seems telling women about how clear their skin would be without telling them about potential little side effects like deep vein thrombosis or perhaps the need for gallbladder surgery wasn’t such a slick marketing move. At least they didn’t try to get shelf space next to Clearasil.

But you know all that. And here’s where the musing and pondering kick in…

Given what’s been going on with Yaz, you may be wondering why on earth there isn’t some big brouhaha going on—you know, one of those class actions. It seems whenever there’s a product—be it a lawnmower, Expedia.com’s hotel reservations, or Similac baby formula—that doesn’t do what it says it will do or causes undo harm, there’s a class action. So, what’s up with Yaz? Where the heck is my “opt in” claim form? Was I not invited?!?

Let’s look at how some of the details rack up: indeed, lots of women allege to have been harmed by Yaz—enough perhaps to even be considered a “class” or at least a sizeable cocktail party. And possible Yaz side effects are numerous—and not just your run of the mill “honey I’ve got a headache gonna lie down” type. No, these are biggies: gallbladder problems, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, heart attack, stroke… Keep in mind, too, the women getting Yaz prescriptions filled are, obviously, within child-bearing age, so they’re younger—not the typical age-range for heart attack or stroke, for example.

So why not a Yaz class action? Why not a little “you may be part of a Yaz lawsuit” postcard in the mailbox or a full-page ad of legalese in People magazine? The answer is because Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Mass Tort, Ocella, Yasmin, Yaz, Yaz lawsuit
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