More Than 28,000 Seroquel Suits Settled by AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca reports that it has reached settlement agreements in virtually all of the Seroquel lawsuits filed by individuals who allege that they developed diabetes or other injuries caused by the weight gain side effects of their popular antipsychotic medication.

In a quarterly earnings report released Thursday, AstraZeneca indicated that it has paid $647 million to settle Seroquel suits brought by 28,461 people. Only about 250 cases remain unresolved, according to the drug maker.

All of the suits allege that AstraZeneca failed to adequately warn about the risk of diabetes from Seroquel side effects. Use of the atypical antipsychotic has been linked to an increased risk of weight gain, hyperglycemia and diabetes.

Since it was approved by the FDA in 1997, Seroquel (quetiapine fumarate) has grown into a blockbuster medication for AstraZeneca, generating sales of about $5 billion a year.

AstraZeneca’s efforts to settle the lawsuits have been ongoing for some time, and it was reported earlier this year that Seroquel settlements were reached in most of the cases, however thousands of cases remained unresolved at the time.

In addition to the $647 million in Seroquel injury settlements, last year the company paid an additional $520 million last year to settle criminal allegations by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that it illegally marketed Seroquel for off-label uses.

While doctors are free to prescribe approved medications for non-approved uses, drug makers are barred from promoting or encouraging such “off-label” use. Since it was approved, Seroquel has been used by more than 19 million people worldwide, and some people have estimated that at one time as much as 70% of all seroquel prescriptions were for unapproved uses.