Conn. Lawsuit Targeting AstraZeneca’s Constipation Drug Movantik Dismissed

HARTFORD, Conn. — A Connecticut federal judge has dismissed with prejudice a lawsuit in which a woman alleged that AstraZeneca’s constipation drug Movantik caused her to sustain life-threatening intestinal injuries, ruling the claims are preempted by federal law.

In an April 4 order, Judge Omar A. Williams of the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut denied the plaintiff’s request to amend her complaint to replead her strict liability design defect claim, explaining it would be futile because it is preempted by the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

Movantik (naloxegol) is a prescription drug used to treat constipation caused …