Anti-Nausea Zofran Birth Defect Cases Consolidated to MDL in Pennsylvania

The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation found sufficient evidence that 12 Zofran cases involving similar facts (birth defects due to taking drug during pregnancy) and a similar defendant (Zofran’s manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline) and consolidated them to a single court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, multiple news outlets reported. Zofran has been on the market since 1991, and as many as 30,000 children have been born with birth defects due to “off-label” use of the drug during pregnancy.  Zofran is approved for people coming out of surgery or undergoing chemotherapy, but has not been approved to treat women with morning sickness. Despite this, thousands of doctors have prescribed the drug “off-label” to pregnant women.  GlaxoSmithKline has already reached a $3 billion settlement with the Justice Department for fraudulent.