Twenty six years after many babies were killed or injured by a product called E-Ferol, a federal judge has approved a $110 million dollar settlement against the product’s maker and marketer. The E-Ferol case is a classic example of the wheels of justice turning very slowly for victims of unscrupulous product marketing. The families of the babies killed in this case, and the surviving babies who had lingering illnesses and medical costs, had to wait almost three decades for a court to rule in their favor.
These families could have benefited from private lawsuit funding to help them with their legal and medical bills while this case was working its way through the courts. Very few individuals can afford the costs of a protracted court case like this. With private financial help that does not have to be repaid unless and until the case is settled, they can pursue justice to its rightful conclusion.
E-Ferol was an IV-delivered vitamin E supplement designed to help prevent blindness in premature babies. It was marketed to doctors and hospitals in 1983 and 1984 without FDA review or approval. Within four months of its introduction, several dozen babies who had been given E-Ferol died and many more suffered kidney and liver complications.
After an investigation by the Food and Drug Administration the product was removed from the market in April of 1984. In subsequent criminal proceedings three officers of the companies that manufactured and distributed E-Ferol were sentenced to six months in prison. The civil class action lawsuit filed on behalf of the victims and their families has taken almost three decades to be resolved.
Families of E-Ferol victims could have soughtlitigation funding to help them with their long legal battle. Remaining victims of this product who have not yet been identified, or their surviving relatives, could also benefit from learning about pre-settlement funding.
At least thirty eight babies died from E-Ferol, but many of the victims’ families did not know for years what had caused their deaths. Keegan McDaniel died in a Dallas hospital in 1984, thirteen days after he was born. His mother, Cynthia McDaniel, did not learn until 2006, when she was contacted by a law firm, that E-Ferol was implicated in her son’s death. Like many parents and doctors, since E-Ferol was considered a vitamin supplement, she assumed it was safe.
Lawyers for Carter-Glogau Laboratories and O'Neal, Jones & Feldman Pharmaceuticals, E-Ferol’s manufacturer and distributor, respectively, contend that vitamin supplements were not closely regulated in the 1980s and that damages caused by the product were inadvertent, unforeseeable, and not the result of any fraud or deception on the part of their clients.
Art Brender, one of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs in the class action suit, contends that the companies involved in the sale of E-Ferol lied to doctors and hospitals. He believes that many more deaths may have been caused by the product than have been specifically attributed to its use. Some hospitals have been unwilling to release information on the use of E-Ferol, since they claim patient privacy issues are involved, while others have cooperated fully in the case.
Given the complexities of a situation like the E-Ferol case, the process of assuring civil justice to the victims is long and incredibly expensive. In order for families injured in a similar situation to be able to survive while the lawsuit is moving through the system, they can turn to a private lawsuit loan to help them with medical bills, legal costs and living expenses until the case is settled.
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