Monthly Archives: March 2011

Antidepressants/Pain Relievers Cause “unprecedented number of emergency room visits & deaths”

Approximately 700,000 visits to the emergency room were linked to drug-related poisoning in 2007, according to a new study published February 28 on the Nationwide Children’s Hospital website. Researchers found that 44 percent of poisonings were caused by prescription medications such antidepressants and opioid pain relievers.

The study found that, on average, 1,900 people per day were sent to the emergency room due to drug overdoses. According to researchers at the Center for Injury Research and Policy of the Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, the cost associated with these visits totals approximately $1.4 billion per year.

Federal Judge & DOJ back lawsuit accusing Johnson & Johnson of illegal kickback scheme to push antipsychotic drugs on elderly

A federal judge has refused to toss out a whistleblower lawsuit backed by the Department of Justice (DOJ), which accuses Johnson & Johnson of involvement in an illegal kickback scheme to push their antipsychotic drugs on elderly nursing home residents that did not need them. The DOJ filed a civil False Claims Act compliant against J&J on January 15, 2010, saying that the company paid millions to Omnicare, Inc. as kickbacks for selling Risperdal to nursing home patients.
According to a recent report from the United Kingdom, side effects of Risperdal and other similar antipsychotics, like Seroquel, Zyprexa and Abilify, could be linked to as many as 1,800 deaths and 1,620 strokes per year in elderly patients with dementia.