Failure-To-Warn Claims are Not Preempted, Judge Rules

ATHENS, Ga. - State law failure-to-warn claims brought against the manufacturer of a generic acne drug are not preempted by federal law because the Food and Drug Administration does not prevent drug makers from strengthening a warning after it is approved, a Georgia federal judge has ruled. Weilbrenner v. Teva Pharmaceuticals Co., No. 7:08-23 (M.D. Ga.).

On March 10, Judge Hugh Lawson of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia denied Teva Pharmaceuticals Co.'s motion for summary judgment.

In January 2006, Katelyn Weilbrenner was prescribed minocycline hydrochloride (the generic form of Minocin) by Dr. Robert Hawes for …