$28 Million Paxil settlement proposed

A class action has been brought in the US territory of Puerto Rico against UK-based drug major GlaxoSmithKline, concerning alleged  production deficiencies to antidepressant Paxil (paroxetine HCl)  tablets. The law suit claims that the product manufactured between April  1, 2002 and March 4, 2005 contained a defect that caused some of the  tablets to split apart. GSK denies the claims and any liability,  according to the settlement administrators, law firms Strange &  Carpenter and Salas & Co. The court case is Simonet versus SmithKline  Beecham Corp [a GSK legacy company], No 06-1230.

If approved, the proposed deal will provide up to $28.0 million to  settle the claims in the law suit. Some of this money will go to payers,  such as insurance companies, that made reimbursements for Paxil CR and  some to consumers who purchased the agent.

The recovery available to insurance companies and other third-party  payers will be based on their number of covered lives as of December 31,  2004. Consumer class members' recovery will be based on the number of  Paxil CR tablets they paid for or purchased, up to $150, that were  defective in that they were split before they were removed from the  container in which they were purchased.