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If you started taking Onglyza after seeing the commercial produced by AstraZeneca and then were diagnosed with heart failure, you're likely wondering:
We are here to answer all of these questions and help you get the compensation you need. Learn more about an Onglyza Lawsuit.
Anyone who has been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes understands how stressful it can be to live with this serious health condition. Checking blood sugar levels regularly, carefully selecting a healthy diet, and making sure to exercise all while having to schedule regular rechecks with a doctor makes an already busy life, hectic.
That’s why when a TV commercial advertising a new drug that may offer some relief to the constant checks, it’s hardly surprising that patients flood their doctors with requests for more information and prescriptions. But it’s always important to keep in mind that just because a drug is new doesn’t mean that it’s better - or even safe.
One of the best-selling Type 2 diabetes drugs is Onglyza, a drug that is part of the DPP-4 inhibitors class. When taken with other diabetes medications, Onglyza works to stop the liver from producing sugar and simultaneously encourages the pancreas to make insulin.
The drug became popular because the manufacturers advertised it as a once a day medication that is a convenient way to regulate insulin. But what they didn’t do was inform the medical community or the public that it may also cause heart failure - and now thousands of patients across the country want answers.
In 2013, the well-respected New England Journal of Medicine released a study in which the participants were given medications containing the active ingredient saxagliptin or a placebo. The results were shocking. Those who were given the medication were found to have a 26% higher risk of developing heart failure.
When the U.S. Food and Drug Administration learned of the results, they requested that the pharmaceutical companies AstraZeneca and Bristol-Myers Squibb submit additional information about their product to a panel for review. Nearly two years later, the panel determined that a black box warning needed to be issued for Onglyza, warning that patients who take the drug may develop heart failure.
The black box warning is the most serious the FDA can issue - if a drug is found to be any more dangerous, it may be pulled from the market entirely.
Across the country, diabetes patients who developed heart failure or the family members of those who died from heart failure after being prescribed Onglyza have decided to hold AstraZeneca and Bristol-Myers Squibb responsible for failing to inform them of the serious risks associated with their drug.
Through either a successful outcome at the end of a trial or a carefully negotiated settlement, plaintiffs may obtain full compensation for:
It’s not uncommon for patients suffering from heart failure to end up with thousands of dollars worth of debt due to medical expenses. In fact, the average hospital stay alone costs around $9,500. If these bills occur because of another party’s negligence, a lawsuit can provide compensation for those losses.
Even though this isn’t a monetary loss, if a patient suffers severe physical pain due to their medical condition, they may recover monetary compensation for this.
It’s no secret that being in the hospital or having serious issues with the heart can result in the inability to go to work. It’s hard enough paying off debt when you can work normally but when you aren’t able to earn a living, that can make things much worse.
This isn’t always available but if the patient has sustained serious emotional trauma, it may be possible to obtain monetary compensation for it.
The exact amount obtained by each client differs as no two clients have the exact same losses.
It takes time to research and collect all of the necessary evidence to support a client’s allegations and then unless a settlement negotiation is reached, a trial must be scheduled. Typically, even the quickest lawsuits take months to resolve and many take more than a year. But this shouldn’t stop someone from pursuing legal action - again, it may be the only way they are able to obtain any sort of compensation.
It’s always tempting to try and navigate the legal system alone but the reality is that there is a reason why attorneys spend years studying the law - it’s complicated and the stress of handling a lawsuit is certainly not healthy for someone who is already dealing with Type 2 diabetes and heart failure.
Our goal is to make sure you get what you need. Together, we will go over every detail in your case, file paperwork, speak with insurance adjusters, and fight for your rights. There is a statute of limitations in Onglyza cases which means there is a limited amount of time to file which is why it’s best to contact us as soon as possible.
Onglyza: Manufacturers' Website
WebMD: How to Use Onglyza
New England Journal of Medicine: Saxagliptin and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
