2000 British Vioxx victims estimated

In the Vioxx recall saga, the focus has been on the United States. The FDA estimated that as many as 140,000 Americans were injured by the drug. While no headcount is available, Dr. David Graham at the FDA estimates that between 50,000-60,000 Americans died from Vioxx.

No accurate estimates are available for other countries in the world but Britain may be the second country to have an estimate. The Sunday Times has done its own investigation and is reporting that the number of deaths in Britain is closer to 2,000. Officially a little over 100 Britons are estimated to have died due to Vioxx.

The US legal system is much more favorable to consumers since they do not have to pay the defendant in case they lose the case. Not so in Britain, and that is a problem, discouraging many Vioxx victims to press their lawsuits.

Mark Harvey, an attorney in south Wales, tells the BBC that he is trying to get the lawsuits tried in the US rather than Britain but the American courts are generally reluctant to take these cases despite the fact that any foreigner can sue an American corporation in the United States.