Lawsuit Alleges Drug Manufacturers Targeting Methods Too General

Richard Scruggs, an Oxford attorney, is most popularly recognized for his paving the way for a settlement between the tobacco industry and the U.S. States in 1998. More recently, he has set his eyes on another tragic situation reaching epidemic proportions: ADHD medication and our children.

Stating a conspiracy grouping psychiatrists and the drug manufacturer of Ritalin, Scruggs contends that over 4 million children are taking Ritalin when it is not even necessary. Filed in the state court in San Diego, CA and the federal court in Hackensack, NJ, the lawsuits claim that the American Psychiatric Association, Novartis AG, and a popular non-profit “support” group called Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder have inappropriately and unnecessarily expanded upon the definition of this disorder to include children that would otherwise not be diagnosed with ADHD.

But why expand on the definition of ADHD to include many “normal” children? For profit of course.

By playing on the basic nurturing nature of a caregiver, the defendants of the lawsuits are playing on the fears of the caregiver wanting a healthy child. But by the expanded standards, virtually every child within the United States would be diagnosed with ADHD.

With over 90 percent of Ritalin sales found in the United States, professionals are finding it hard to explain why Europe and other countries are not experiencing this enormous influx of ADHD diagnosed children.

This spring, the White House launched an important initiative to reduce the number of children using this popular treatment.

Scruggs hopes to alter the method by which Ritalin is prescribed.

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