SACRAMENTO – A California consumer alleges a brand of prescription diabetes medication is fraudulently marketed.
Frank Fernandez, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, filed a complaint on May 8 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California against Takeda Pharmaceuticals America Inc., Eli Lilly and Co. and Des 1-100 over alleged violation of the California Consumer Legal Remedies Act, California Unfair Competition Law and California False Advertising Law.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that defendants' Actos drug was fraudulently marketed to make consumers and prescribers believe that "Actos did not pose any significant risk for bladder cancer. The results were devastating—many thousands of patients ended up developing bladder cancer and the defendants made billions."
The plaintiff alleges he used Actos from 2000 to 2010 and was never informed about the drug's association with bladder cancer. He alleges if he had known of the increased risk, he would not have taken the drug.
The plaintiff holds Takeda Pharmaceuticals America Inc., Eli Lilly and Co. responsible because the defendants allegedly gave false certification of Actos' safety and omitted material information concerning to the actual results of the clinical trials and adverse events that showed Actos increased the risk of bladder cancer.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks actual or compensatory damages, pre- and post-judgment interest, attorneys' fees, costs of suit and such other and further relief as the court deems just and proper under the circumstances. He is represented by Pedram Esfandiary, R. Brent Wisner and Michael L. Baum of Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman PC in Los Angeles.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California case number 2:18-cv-01142-TLN-DB