Fla. Federal Judge Refuses to Toss Misbranding Claims in Zantac MDL

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A Florida federal judge has refused to dismiss claims that the manufacturers of the over-the-counter heartburn drug Zantac (ranitidine) misbranded their products, ruling they are not preempted because plaintiffs have alleged state-law causes of action that parallel federal law.

However, in the June 30 order, Judge Robin L. Rosenberg of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida held that claims for failure to warn through the FDA are impliedly preempted under Buckman Co. v. Plaintiffs Legal Comm., 531 U.S. 341 (2001).

Scientific studies have shown that ranitidine can transform into a …