Feezer indicates in the complaint that he took both medications from 2022 until late 2023, after they were prescribed by his physician. However, due to Ozempic and Rybelsus side effects, he developed intestinal atony, also known as ileus, where the intestinal muscles fail to contract to properly move food through the digestive tract.
The lawsuit notes that Feezor suffered severe nausea, vomiting, abdominal discomfort and constipation, which has required numerous trips to the emergency room. However, it also indicates that Novo Nordisk knew about these risks long before Feezor ever took the medication, due to numerous scientific articles, but has continuously failed to adequately warn either users or the medical community.
“As early as 2010, a study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism concluded that GLP-1 slows gastric emptying,” the lawsuit states. “Defendants knew or should have known of the risks of ileus, intestinal obstruction, and their sequelae from the clinical trials, medical literature, and case report.”
Feezor presents claims of inadequate warning, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent misrepresentation and fraudulent concealment. He seeks both compensatory and punitive damages.
October 2024 Ozempic Lawsuit Update
Feezor’s lawsuit was filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where it will be included with about 800 other similar claims currently pending in a federal multidistrict litigation (MDL) before U.S. District Judge Karen S. Marson, for coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings.
As part of the management of the MDL, Judge Marston has indicated that before any individual cases are prepared for trial, the Court will address a number of “cross cutting” issues that are likely to impact large numbers of claims. Therefore, early discovery and motions will focus on addressing whether the claims are preempted by federal law, and whether plaintiffs must provide specific diagnostic testing to establish their gastrointestinal injury.
The court is then expected to establish a bellwether program, where the parties will select a small group of representative claims that will go through case-specific discovery and be prepared for the first federal trial dates. While the outcomes in these claims will not be binding on other claimants, the average lawsuit payouts may impact the amount of Ozempic and Mounjaro settlements the drug makers may later need to offer to avoid the need for each individual case to go before separate juries in future years.