Merck & Co reports on Vioxx law suits

US drug major Merck & Co says that more than 44,000 of around 47,000 individuals who registered eligible injuries from the firm's COX-2 inhibitor Vioxx (rofecoxib; Marketletters passim) have submitted some or all of the materials required for enrollment that could qualify them for an interim payment in the program to resolve state and federal myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke claims filed against the company in the USA.

If all of these suitable submissions are completed in accordance with the settlement agreement, this would represent more than 93% of the eligible MI and IS claims previously registered with the program. In addition, approximately 5,000 other claimants have sought to enroll and their eligibility status still has to be determined.If the threshold for enrollment documents is met, which now looks likely, Merck will be obligated to pay $4.85 billion in installments into the resolution fund.