Merck to fund Vioxx settlement in August

[rhonda]

buddy faircloth wrote:

when does payment go out what day

No need to wait for the latest information to be relayed to you on settlement. Get latest information about the process here:

A place for you to share your stories and get advice.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/viox-xse...

[Lynne in SC]

Yes finally today there are at least 3 articles stating checks will begin to go out next week on Aug 28th. Also they say about 3441 cases are ready to get the points values for the checks. It is a small beginning- but at least it is a start. AND YES of course they will send out an agreement form before they send you a check… YOU MUST AGREE with the points amount - and sign forms -before they can pay you… Also the points are being valued at $1900 each which is great….Come on WSJ where is your new article about vioxx?

Comment by finally good news

[SKM]

Is the address correct? Nothing found at that address.

[fayoo]

rhonda wrote:

<quoted text>
No need to wait for the latest information to be relayed to you on settlement. Get latest information about the process here:
A place for you to share your stories and get advice.
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/viox-xse...

I went to your address and it must be wrong because it gave it nothing

[Lynne in SC]

Google "Vioxx settlement checks" go to advanced search with phrase "Aug 28" and it will show about 10 new articles from Aug 20th that say check will begin next week. However if you have not heard anything yet inwriting from your lawyer you won't be getting one next week. I doubt more than 1000 people out of the 45,000 that have claims pending will get a check next week.

[Iowa Bound]

I am also concerned about making the gate. I was on vioxx for 5 full years and suffered extreme memory loss I didn't know why until June of 2003 when I threw a blood clot to my brain. One dr. said it was a series of TIAs and another said it was full blown stroke. But, I don't know what info the lawyers have decided to share. This bothers me, too. Truth be known, I have never had the pain relief that I did while on vioxx--nor have I ever felt so alone, vague and scared. I just hope they read all of the anecdotal info that explains what it feels like to get in front of a college class, begin lecture and feel fear race up your back as you can't remember a very necessary 'term'--such as antebellum! I lost a great deal of earning power as well as self-esteem over those 5 years.
I have heard more than once that it was a shame that I just didn't have a little bigger stroke so that it would definitely be included! The world is NUTS!!!

[Kerry_s wife]

Iowa Bound....yep, fear has been a BIG factor! Imagine the fear when the dr. comes out of the ER and says he doesn't know if they will be able to save my husband's life or not!!

[Lynne in SC]

THE LAWYERS DON'T DECIDE WHAT INFO TO SHARE - A ALL MEDICAL FROM 1 YR BEFORE THE EVENT THRU 2 YRS AFTER THE EVENT HAD TO BE INCLUDED. IHAD LISTED ALL MY DOCTORS AND THEN IN MAY 2008 I REMEMBERED SEEING AN ENDOCRINOLOGIST THE MONTH BEFORE MY HEART ATTACK. So I called my lawyer and JUST ADDED THAT DOCTOR TO MY FILE - THIS MEDICAL WAS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT SHOWED I WAS ON VIOXX THAT MONTH BEFORE.
I HOPE I PASS THE GATES TOO! SINCE MY DOCTOR GAVE ME VIOXX SAMPLES WHICH HE DID NOT LIST ON EACH MONTHLY VISIT. I ONLY HAD PROOF OF 2 VIOXX PRESCRIPTIONS THAT WHOLE YEAR BEFORE. BUT MY CASE IS PENDING - my lawyers are positive and I will know soon.
BLOG IF YOU GET APPROVED OR DENIED....

[SKM]

Kerry_s wife wrote:

Iowa Bound....yep, fear has been a BIG factor! Imagine the fear when the dr. comes out of the ER and says he doesn't know if they will be able to save my husband's life or not!!

Imagine what it was like when they did!! Mine didn't make it at all, no chance!! It was back in 2000, try to find any documentation from the pharmacys, doesn't exist. They destroy it after 2 years, there is no proof of how much you took...
Will we qualify, who knows??

[Kerry_s wife]

Oh my...such pain, skm!! I have an idea my husband wouldn't have made it if his Mom hadn't been here and given him a nitro pill when he collapsed (2001). We were able to get his pharmacy records, so I don't think he will have any trouble qualifying...especially when his case was going to be one of the representative cases they were going to take to trial.

[Kerry_s wife]

Hubby just received a letter from his attorneys with a limited power of attorney to sign. The power of atty gives his lawyers the right to endorse the check from BG in hubby's stead when they get it (the ck will be made out jointly to hubby and the law office). They are also saying that BG will not release the ck to them unless they have this signed power of atty. The letter also states that they are still waiting for BG to "determine and finalize" the value of his vioxx claim. Has anyone else received anything like this?

[Pharmgirl]

How can the checks come out on the 28th, if the claims adminstrator is still reviewing who took how much and when? I do not understand. Not anyone still to this day and its already Mon. and still no one knows beans, who is playing with the money? It sure as hell not the plantiffs, it is just strange though how contradicting all these stories is, I thought all the claims was already reviewed, everyone had passed the gates already, but they have not even started processing any of this, just what are they doing? I don't trust this anymore, I am wore down, wore out from the drama and feet dragging, if you notice they will drag this on to the end of the year to get their kickback. See they can claim a loss. What a show should get an Oscar award So long I going back in time to the Twilight Zone and will reappear 10 years from now to see if anyone ever got justice. Most of us will be dead from old age, so they already know how to play the cards. By they, I mean Merck, why did they have to have outside help to begin with?

[pamela]

I have been trying to find information for victims who took free samples of vioxx given to them by thier doctor. I am wondering if anyone knows if my mom will meet the proximity of usage if she took one month of free samples and one more month of a perscription?

[Kerry_s wife]

Pharmgirl....I believe there are 2500 cases ready to receive checks and 3441 cases ready to be assigned their award points (meaning the medical records have all been received and reviewed)....not ALL of the claims have been reviewed yet. They stated that the claims would be paid on a "rolling" basis as they were received and as the medical evidence is provided....as the claims are finalized and the points awarded and approved, the checks will be mailed out. The payments were to BEGIN August 28th....not all checks to be mailed out on that date. It would be impossible for one law firm to review 50,000 cases with medical records in just a mere 2 months. There are a HUGE number of cases to go thru and, unfortunately, it takes time to do so.

[waiting but hopeful]

Thank you Kerry's wife .- Enough complianing Pharmgirl- just because your pea brain does not understand the settlement , stop complaining about it. We are all waiting and it takes time - bit ITIS going according to plan,. obviosly you never worked in an office that processed numerous claims all at one time. I did! And the cases stack up but the workers can only make the right decision one case at a time. let's leave the blog for peole who actually heard something.
** And yes Pamela the samples count - if she had at least 30 pills from a doctor within 60 days of teh heart attack.

[Mike - Roadrunner]

SKM wrote:

<quoted text>
It was back in 2000, try to find any documentation from the pharmacys, doesn't exist. They destroy it after 2 years, there is no proof of how much you took...
Will we qualify, who knows??

SKM - If you used your credit card to pay for the prescription, the CC company should have a record of the transaction. They may or may not have the prescription number on their record, but they should have a date and time, which could be matched to the pharmacy records. The pharmacy may have destroyed their hard copy, but I'm sure that there would be an electronic archieve. They fill thousands of prescriptions every year, and their liability for malpractice and negligence would require a longer record retention period. You may not convince the pharmacy to release the information (not in their interest to do so), but your lawyer should. This is another reason for using a lawyer in such a complicated and frustrating case.

I have also heard, from my attorney, that a value of $1900 per point has been established. My own case is still awaiting a confirmation letter, so it looks like a continued wait.

We are all getting impatient. Sometimes I feel like a convict sitting in a cell counting days. There is nothing that can really be done other than accept the reality, and learn to be patient.

It's very important to remind ourselves about a few things:
1) Until you have been notified of the points awarded, and signed the letter of agreement, you don't know how much money you will be receiving.
2) Until the check is deposited in your account, you don't have it.
3) Don't spend money you don't have.
4) Don't borrow against funds you do not yet have.

Patience is an important part of a legal settlement. Those who are willing to wait will usually fare better than those who rush toward a faster settlement. When you are finally awarded your "points", you may have to consider disputing that number, and that could mean adding another long time period to the whole thing.

[Annette]

Thank you Mike and Kerrys wife....for reminding us of the importance of patience and understanding. I check these blogs on occasion but most of the time refrain from posting a comment, especially when some vioxx claimants just rant and rave and blabber like idiots.

[beenthere2]

Waiting but hopeful - with the amount of money the lawyers are getting from this settlement, they should be able to hire adequate staff to complete this in the timeframe first set by Merck. In the settlement, claimants were given strict deadlines with which they must comply; however, Merck had many open-ended or nebulous deadlines. So, lay off Pharmgirl! Who do you work for? Merck or Brown Greer?

[Kerry_s wife]

Just talked with the attorney's office as I had several questions. Here were the answers I got:

Hubby's case HAS passed the gates and is now awaiting notification of award points.

They have not received any private insurance subrogation info as of yet on any of their cases.

The 8% fee to BG and the committees will be paid outside the $4.85B settlement.

Attorneys will deduct their percentage from interim (and final) payment and send hubby what is left.
*Before there are any complaints about it, this is normal law office procedure*

[Casper921 in Georgia]

Seems to me a federal judge should tell them to get their asses in gear. It is ridiculous that they have only been able to clear 2500 cases this far into the settlement. The staff they are using to process these cases must be 10 clerks. They need a several hundred at least maybe a thousand. My original memory of the settlement, when we were being encouraged to accept it, was that 40% was to be paid in August 2008 and the balance, 60% in April 2009. Whoever said a few blogs back that we may never see a penny of this money might well be right.