As a Virginia products liability lawyer in a firm handling Johnson and Johnson (Depuy) hip recall cases, I know that the regulation of medical appliances is not what it should be. A panel of medical experts came to the conclusion on Friday that the Government should discard their system for approving medical devices because it fails to protect patients. The panel’s advice, which was commissioned by the Food and Drug Administration, is of course not mandatory. The FDA actually dismissed the advice to get rid of the system, since they have been hard at work for the past year to improve the $350 billion industry that makes and sells medical devices.
The problem with the process is that many medical devices only have to show they are similar to devices already on the market; few undergo widespread testing to prove they’re safe. The chairman of the Institute of Medical panel said it would take time to develop a new system to substitute for the old system that has been in operation for more than three decades.
There are many cases where drugs and medical devices don’t get tested properly, or are not tested thoroughly enough before they are released on the market. This can cause terrible, life-altering side effects for those consumers. As a Virginia Beach, (VA) personal injury lawyer, I know how to handle prescription drug product liability lawsuits. Contact our injury law firm today for a free, no-hassle consultation if you are injured from a defective medical product like the recalled Depuy hip replacements.
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About the Editors: Shapiro & Appleton& Duffan is a law firm whose attorneys focus on injury and accident law and have experience handling wrongful death claims. Check out our case results to see for yourself. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia (VA), and Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Rick Shapiro and James Lewis were included in the 2011 issue of Best Lawyers in America. They, along with fellow attorney John C., were also named 2011 Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury Law, an honor which fewer than 5 percent of outstanding lawyers receive. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube. Further, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Suffolk Injuryboard, Norfolk-Portsmouth-Hampton Injuryboard and Greenville-Outer Banks-Rocky Mount Injuryboard blog sites as pro bono public information services. If you are thinking about taking legal action against the at-fault person or company that caused the death of your loved one, call our office at (833) 997-1774 for a free, confidential consultation. If you cannot get through due to high call volume, be sure to leave a voicemail so we can return your call.