Glaxo says settles some Paxil birth-defect cases

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Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline said on Tuesday it had agreed to settle certain U.S. lawsuits alleging its Paxil antidepressant caused birth defects in some patients but declined to put a figure on the settlements.

“GSK has reached agreement to settle certain cases involving the use of Paxil during pregnancy. The details of those settlements are confidential,” spokeswoman Claire Brough said in an e-mailed statement.

“Other cases remain pending. Three cases are scheduled for trial in Philadelphia in September,” she added.

"GSK considers options for every case, including settlement when it makes sense. The company has agreed to these settlements, despite its litigation defences, in order to avoid the costs, burdens and uncertainties of ongoing litigation.”

Bloomberg News, citing people familiar with the settlements, earlier said the drugmaker had agreed to pay more than $1 billion to resolve more than 800 birth-defect cases related to Paxil.

News of the Paxil settlements comes after British-based Glaxo said last week it was taking a 1.57 billion-pound ($2.4 billion) legal charge to cover litigation related to Paxil, as well as to its diabetes pill Avandia and a former factory in Puerto Rico.

In the case of Paxil, the company said on July 15 that it had settled the “vast majority” of product liability cases.

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LONDON (Reuters)

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