Conn. High Court Refuses to Overturn Defense Verdict in Pradaxa Wrongful Death Case

HARTFORD — The Connecticut Supreme Court has refused to overturn a verdict in favor of Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. (BIPI) in a Pradaxa wrongful death action, agreeing with the trial court that the plaintiff’s design defect claim is preempted by federal law.

In a May 4 opinion, the appellate court found the drug maker could not have satisfied its alleged state law duty to the decedent without marketing an unapproved Pradaxa reversal agent in violation of federal law.

After experiencing heart palpitations in 2003, Mary Boone was diagnosed with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation and was prescribed warfarin — an anticoagulant. The …