Product Liability claims for off label marketing

After agreeing to pay $520 million to settle civil charges for off-label marketing of its Seroquel antipsychotic, AstraZeneca still faces an estimated 26,000 product liability lawsuits brought by individuals who claim that the risk of developing diabetes was hidden from patients and physicians. However, as Ed Silverman reports in Pharmalot, it is unlikely, for now, that AstraZeneca will be motivated to reach a settlement with these plaintiffs. Why? The drugmaker has so far succeeded in fending off the initial rush of challenges, partly by arguing plaintiffs already suffer from health problems that can cause diabetes.