subject: J&j Adds Eprex To Recall Tally On Top Of Depuy Hip Replacement [print this page] With complaints about the DePuy hip replacement recall continuing to escalate, Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has added another recall, this time on 200,000 syringes of its Eprex anemia drug. The hip replacement recall has been estimated to cost J&J about $1 billion according to a New York Times analysis. J&J would be hard pressed to prove its claim that the DePuy recall is not expected to have a material adverse effect on the companys financial position especially that medical device excise tax had someartificial joint manufacturers talking of offshoring.
The announcement of its new recall of Eprex syringes because some batches may not be as potent as they should be further complicates J&Js new statement. The recall affects batches distributed in 17 countries, but the company believes most of the syringes have already been used, and only about 6,300 remain on the market. J&J said that no adverse events have been reported despite this.
DePuy Orthopaedics Inc.s announcement of a worldwide recall of two of its hip replacement systems, the ASR XL Acetabular System and the DePuy ASR Hip Resurfacing Platform August of 2010 was its most high profile recall to date. More complaints are expected to be filed with the British Joint Registry estimating that nearly one third of the hip implant will fail after six years and the DePuy already accounting for 75 percent of the 5,000 complaints on hip replacement received by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this year so far, more complaints are expected to be filed. For the last two months alone, about 700 lawsuits have also been filed against J&J.
By hiring Broadspire Services to handle the hip replacement recall, J&J has been questioned. By putting victims under the care of doctors on J&Js payroll, not the patients own doctor, and requiring those patients to hand over medical records the company would not normally get a look at unless the patient was represented by an attorney, J&J have been accused of trying to cut on the settlement expenses and taking advantage of patients.
This year, the Eprex incident follows a slew of consumer-drug recalls--the most recent one in August--which involved almost 2.5 million packages of a Tylenol Cold product. Some other prescription drugs pulled out by the company included bottles of its epilepsy drug Topamax, its atypical antipsychotic Risperdal and its HIV treatment Prezista--as well as leaky insulin cartridges and potentially unsterile drug sutures.
J&J is continuing to overhaul its quality control and manufacturing processes, and it's slowly getting some long-absent consumer drugs back to market. However, its CEO William Weldon admitted that the company has some ground to make up with consumers to mend its now-tattered reputation for high-quality products. Damage has already been done with 93,000 people worldwide having received the DePuy hip implants despite J&Js DePuy hip replacement recall.
