Cardiac drugs' makers sued

TRENTON, N.J. — The makers of popular cholesterol drugs Vytorin and Zetia are being sued over allegations that Merck and Schering-Plough misled consumers into thinking the drugs were more effective than generic ones.

Lawsuits have been filed in federal courts in states including California, Florida, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York and Ohio, according to court documents and interviews with attorneys. The consumer-fraud suits, which all seek class-action status, were filed on behalf of patients and medical insurers who paid for the expensive cholesterol drugs.

The lawsuits come less than two weeks after Merck and Schering-Plough released a study that raised questions about whether Vytorin and Zetia are more effective than generic drugs. The companies have a joint venture that markets Vytorin, which combines Merck's Zocor and Schering-Plough's Zetia.

The New Jersey suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Newark on Jan. 17 by the Seattle law firm of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro on behalf of an Everett, Wash., man.

Additional suits are pending in several other states and Puerto Rico.

Spokeswomen for Merck and Schering-Plough said the companies will defend themselves vigorously.

The companies' study essentially found that Vytorin was no better at reducing plaque buildup than Zocor, which is available as an inexpensive generic drug called simvastatin. Vytorin did reduce cholesterol levels a little more than Zocor alone.

The companies did not release results of the study, completed in April 2006, until Jan. 15, five weeks after the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce wrote to the chief executives of Merck and Schering-Plough inquiring about the delay and demanding documents.

Material from Seattle Times reporter Kyung M. Song is included in this report.