The startling truth about Zoloft dangers and poor efficacy are revealed in a new lawsuit

Are you a victim of this billion-dollar scandal?

It sounds like something straight out of a class B horror movie.

Secret documents, fudged records and a scheme to sell snake oil. Dangerous pharmaceutical-grade snake oil. If this was just the plot to a bad flick, at least we could take our popcorn and go home.

But sadly, that’s not the case.

‘The Pelican Brief’

At the end of October, the Louisiana Attorney General filed a lawsuit against Pfizer for fraudulent and deceptive marketing of its blockbuster antidepressant, Zoloft.

According to the complaint, early studies showed the drug worked no better than a placebo.

Well, not exactly. The complaint further states that the sugar pill was actually MORE effective!

The lawsuit says that the company deliberately — yes, deliberately — withheld that information from doctors, regulators and patients. They’re also accused of misrepresenting the results in ghostwritten articles in medical journals and phony ads.

Some other choice tidbits from the complaint:

* In six major drug trials Pfizer submitted to the FDA, four showed no favorable results for Zoloft, and the two that did were later found to be flawed

* A memo from the company in 1992 stated that the drug “shows no trend to be better than placebo”

* Pfizer “deliberately concealed” information showing Zoloft was not effective

So it’s a documented fact that Pfiizer execs knew that Zoloft was useless.

But this is much more than just corporate greed and deception. This one ranks right up there with the tobacco scandals. That’s because Zoloft has left a superstorm path of death and destruction behind it since it first came on the scene in 1991.

Like all other antidepressants in its class, Zoloft contains that “black box” warning that it may cause “suicidal thoughts or actions.” In fact, Brynn Hartman, the wife of Phil Hartman, was taking Zoloft when she killed the comedian, and then herself, in 1999. (That lawsuit was settled with Pfizer for an undisclosed sum.)

But it gets worse…

A lot of moms took the drug while pregnant, resulting in a slew of lawsuits over horrible birth defects. As you can imagine, there are a ton of lawsuits still pending.

Back in Louisiana, in addition to damages, fines, and penalties, the state wants Pfizer to stop ignoring laws that protect consumers. And on top of that, they want the drug maker to give back all the ill-gotten gains it made from selling Zoloft there.

Remember that Zoloft commercial that was animated with a sad, cartoon circle under a dark cloud? It ended by saying, “When you know more about what’s wrong, you can help make it right.”

Looks like the Pelican State is going to make Pfizer eat those words!

Sources:
“Louisiana AG Sues Pfizer Over A ‘Fraudulent Zoloft Scheme'” Ed Silverman, Pharmalot, 10/31/13, pharmalive.com