Claims Against Teva in Oral Contraceptive Action Preempted, Fla. Federal Judge Rules

MIAMI — A Florida federal judge has dismissed an oral contraceptives lawsuit against Teva Pharmaceuticals Inc., ruling that the claims are preempted because under federal law, the drug cannot unilaterally enhance the warnings in the drugs’ labels.

In a Feb. 4 order, Judge Darrin Gayles of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida held that the drug maker cannot change the label of the name brand drug because it is not the holder of the New Drug Application.

Michelle Smith was prescribed the oral contraceptive Seasonale in October 2006, and from 2006 to 2008 ingested the …