Imagine an FDA-approved medical device, pill, or food causes some bad side effects. Perhaps it makes you vomit, gives you heart palpitations, or ruptures...while it's inside of you. It's been federally approved as safe, but clearly accidents happen, doctors ignore operational instructions, or the offending item interacts with something in your body in an unusual way that was never tested. Don't try to sue the manufacturer - the Supreme Court just decided today that you have no legal options at your disposal.
In an 8-1 ruling, the Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit on behalf of a man whose catheter malfunctioned during a surgery, arguing that the company is protected under a 1976 law governing the sanctity of federal oversight and approval in the testing of medical equipment. Suing in state court is therefore overridden by confidence in the approval processes of the FDA.
Several questions remain in my mind. Can a plaintiff file in federal court against a negligent company? Was Medtronic Inc. responsible for the malfunctioning catheter (with deficient instructions on the apparatus) or was the doctor to blame for his incorrect insertion and 'ballooning' technique? If the latter applies, should the doctor be sued? And, perhaps most importantly in my mind, to what extent can we as ill-informed citizens trust the federal government's oversight in the approval of medical devices and consumables?
In the pharmaceutical industry, blatant human guinea pigging is occurring as new designer drugs pour into the marketplace, featured prominently in TV commercials and train station billboards, only to be recalled months or years later for their horrific side effects. NEVER forget that all of these drugs over the years were FDA approved and considered 'safe' for public consumption. I consider it human testing only because the rush to bring these medications to the marketplace decreases the likelihood, by sheer time constraint, that they will be tested for long-term effects and possibly fatal interactions with both other meds and pre-existing health issues in individuals.
At this point, the only thing that the pharmaceutical companies (under federal government oversight) have proved is that they will repeatedly - and often, I believe, knowingly - poison us or expose us to harm until they are 'caught'.
For the full article regarding the Supreme Court's ruling today, look here: http://www.reuters.com/article/companyNewsAndPR/idUSN2040269820080220?sp...
In my next entry, I'm going to delve a bit into specifically troubling drugs, pharmaceutical companies, and vaccination. Stay tuned,
Jessica
www.progressiveu.org/blog/twilightzarathustra
www.myspace.com/artistsforawareness911
