Yasmin Settlement News Does Not Mean It's Too Late to File a Lawsuit

Fort Worth, TXWomen following news about Yasmin birth control might be concerned that recent news involving money set aside to settle Yasmin lawsuits means that it is too late to file a lawsuit. In truth, however, this news simply means that Bayer, maker of Yasmin and Yaz, is expecting to settle lawsuits, but more lawsuits can certainly be filed. Yasmin and Yaz lawsuits allege women suffered serious birth control side effects, including blood clots and gallbladder problems.

According to reports, including an article at LawyersandSettlements, Bayer has reserved almost $900 million to settle Yasmin and Yaz lawsuits. An initial $610 million was set aside in July 2012 and an additional $262.5 million was reserved in October 2012. So far, more than 3,000 lawsuits have been settled for a total of $750 million, with an additional 3,800 lawsuits pending.

Those huge numbers may make it seem that all potential lawsuits regarding Yasmin and Yaz have been filed, and women with a claim who have not filed are out of luck, but the truth is that there is still time to file a lawsuit if a woman has suffered adverse effects from certain birth control pills. Although the statute of limitations varies from state to state, making it vital to contact an attorney as soon as possible to discuss legal options, the clock typically does not begin running until the patient knew or should reasonably have known that her injury was caused by the medication in question.

Some birth control pills did not receive updated warning labels—to include the risk of blood clots associated with drospirenone-containing oral contraceptives—until 2012, meaning some women may not have realized until fairly recently that their blood clot may have been linked to their use of birth control.

In April 2012, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Drug Safety Communication warning about the risks associated with using birth control that contained drospirenone. According to the agency, a review of studies suggested birth control pills that contained drospirenone may be associated with a higher risk of blood clots than pills that contained other progestins. At the time, the FDA also announced updated warning labels for those drugs.

While the statute of limitations is likely running on filing a Yasmin or Yaz lawsuit, time has not run out just because settlement news has been announced. Women who suffered adverse reactions to Yasmin or Yaz may still have time to file a lawsuit.

Federal multi-district litigation concerning Yaz is known as Yasmin and Yaz (Drospirenone) Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation (MDL No. 2100, Southern District Illinois).