French Safety Agency Issues Yaz Warning

The number of reports of side effects related to Yaz, including deep vein thrombosis, blood clots, pulmonary embolism, and stroke, have alerted a number of health and safety administrations worldwide. This includes the National Drugs Safety Agency (ANSM) in France, which is warning that physicians should limit their prescriptions of the fourth generation birth control pills to women who have problems with older oral contraceptives. They say that these medications, which include Yaz, Yasmin, and Ocella, should be prescribed as a “last resort” because of the serious side effects that have been associated with the medication.

Risks linked to synthetic hormone

The ANSM is currently investigating, according to recent reports, how and why the new third and fourth generation birth control pills are being prescribed to patients who may need them. The French government will cease to refund prescription costs of third generation pills after March 31 of this year. This includes Bayer’s Meliane. About two million French women take newer formulations of birth control pills, including third generation pills and fourth generation medications including Yaz and Yasmin. It has been said the the French health agency may implement a limited recall on some brands of newer birth control pills if they continue to be prescribed on such a large scale.

Many women who have been prescribed Yaz or Yasmin and have suffered side effects from it believe that they were not adequately warned about the risks by drug maker Bayer. For this reason, new warnings are being issued in both the United States and France in an attempt to warn consumers about the consequences some Yaz patients have suffered.

Legal options for Yaz patients

Some patients who have suffered from Yaz side effects have chosen to file a Yaz lawsuit with the help of a personal injury lawyer. These patients are hoping to be compensated for injuries they have suffered as a result of their use of the medication and at this point, the defendant drug maker has negotiated more than $350 million in out of court settlements that it has paid to women who experienced some of the more serious side effects associated with the medication.