Deadly diabetes drug trial in court

500 deaths from diabetes drug - process has begun

05/14/2012

Judicial process on the fatal consequences of the diabetes remedy Mediator has begun. In 2010 it became known that the diabetes drug is eligible for the death of at least 500 people. 18 months after the scandal became public, the criminal case against Jacques Servier, the 90-year-old boss of the pharmaceutical company, was opened.

Around 350 people claim damages from the pharmaceutical company, as the dangers of the diabetes remedy have been known for a long time and patients have been exposed to a potentially fatal health risk for purely profit reasons. On Monday, the criminal proceedings were opened in Nanterre near Paris. According to the indictment, the drug Mediator (active ingredient: Benfluorex) is said to be responsible for the death of 500 to 2,000 patients.

3,500 hospitalizations due to the use of the mediator
From 1976 to 2009, the diabetes drug of the pharmaceutical manufacturer Servier was mainly prescribed in France, whereas the product was not approved in Germany and Austria - possibly for a good reason. According to the French health authorities, over the past thirty years in France, around 3,500 people have been hospitalized for taking Mediator and at least 500 patients have died as a result of use. By the end of 2009, the evidence had condensed so much that the French pharmaceutical regulators were forced to prohibit Mediator because of the massive side effects in France.

For profit, the deaths of hundreds of patients were accepted?
The accused boss of the pharmaceutical manufacturer Servier is now accused in the process of having fraudulently offered to continue the diabetes drug, although the health risks were long known. Mediator was not only prescribed for immediate treatment of diabetes, but also as an appetite suppressant. The company had negligently the killing or at least the serious damage to the health of customers accepted, so the charge of the prosecution. Until recently, the pharmaceutical company had dismissed any responsibility and excluded any connection with the deaths. However, at the beginning of last year, a sudden move came into play after it was foreseeable that the indictment would be allowed against the company and a conviction is quite likely. The second-largest French pharmaceutical manufacturer then offered to set up a compensation fund in the amount of 20 million euros. But hereby, too, the company triggered more annoyance than approval from those concerned, since in the event of a successful claim, a compensation of 200 million euros in total - ie ten times the total supply - is in the room. (Fp)

Also read:
500 deaths from diabetes drug mediator?
Charge: 500 deaths from diabetes drug

Picture: Rainer Sturm