Pharmacy Mistake Leads to Wrongful Death—Rite Aid Faces Lawsuit

Our Maryland Pharmacy Error Injury Lawyers have been following the recent case filed last week on behalf of John Sheridan, a man who died after being prescribed the wrong dosage of a cancer medication.

According to the suit, Sheridan was prescribed Temodar, a powerful drug for brain tumors that was part of his treatment of cancer in September 2007. The prescription was allegedly written incorrectly, and Sheridan was wrongly prescribed 10 times the correct dosage—he reportedly took the medicine daily when it was only to be used every other week. Rite Aid Pharmacy allegedly dispensed the drug to Sheridan, without checking with Sheridan’s oncologist for a second opinion to clarify the prescription mistake.

The lawsuit accuses a Rite Aid pharmacy for contributing in the wrongful death of Sheridan, who reportedly had consumed toxic doses of the cancer medication. According to the Associated Press, the doctor who wrote the incorrect prescription has settled with Sheridan’s estate.

According to a 2006 report from the Institute of Medicine, at least 1.5 million Americans are injured by medication mistakes every year, and nearly 7,000 people die every year from medication errors annually.

Our attorneys at Lebowitz and Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers are committed to making sure that victims of medication error and their loved ones receive the personal injury or wrongful death compensation they deserve. If someone you know has been injured or has died due to a pharmacy error in the Washington D.C. area or in the state of Maryland, contact us at 1-800-654-1949 to schedule your free consultation.

Rite Aid Blamed in Mich. Man’s Death, CBS News/AP, December 22, 2009
Pharmacy Faces Lawsuit, Detroit Free Press, December 22, 2009
IOM Q&A: Medication Errors in the United States, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, August 3, 2006

Related Web Resources:

Institute for Safe Medication Practices, (ISMP)

Institute of Medicine, (IOM)

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