A tainted steroid medication has led to at least three deaths in Florida and almost twenty across the nation. Dr. John Armstrong, Florida’s Surgeon General and Secretary of Health, said that the tainted steroid has led to the onset of meningitis symptoms in at least thirteen Floridians. Over 240 people across the nation have contracted meningitis from the contaminated medication.
The medication, which was to be used for back pain, originated in the New England Compounding Center in Massachusetts. Federal health officials are still trying to determine how the medication was contaminated. Officials are also trying to determine if any other medications from the facility have been contaminated.
Over 260 health care facilities in Florida have received the contaminated medication. State officials are urging doctors and heath care centers to contact any patients who may have been treated with the medication, particularly patients who were treated for eye or heart surgery, since January. Armstrong did note that the only medication “implicated in infection is the steroid used for epidural back injections.” At least one lawsuit has been filed against a health center that administered the contaminated medication.
3rd person dies from Fla. meningitis outbreak, www.miamiherald.com October 17, 2012.
Manufacturers of medication are expected to produce and deliver medication free of contamination or other defects. When a patient suffers as a result of a contaminated or defective medication, his or her doctors, medicinal manufacturers and health care facility have all breached their duty of care to the patient. If you or a loved one has suffered as a result of a doctor or health care facility’s negligence, call the Miami medical malpractice lawyers at the Friedland | Carmona today! Having dedicated over twenty years to helping patients, the consumer advocate attorneys have successfully recovered substantial compensation for their clients. Don’t hesitate! Call (305) 661-2008 today for your free consultation!
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