Class Claims Prilosec Heartburn Drug|Increases the Risk of Food Poisoning

COLUMBUS, Ohio (CN) - A federal class action claims that the heartburn drug Prilosec OTC causes increased risk of contracting food-borne diseases, and that Procter & Gamble and AstraZeneca failed to warn consumers of it. Plaintiffs claim that the defendants "intentionally and uniformly hid from consumers that use of Prilosec OTC increases the risk of food-borne illnesses."

Prilosec OTC is the brand name for omeprazole magnesium delayed-release tablets. Defendants released it in 2003. Before then it was a prescription drug, and still is available at prescription strength, according to the complaint.

The drug is a "proton pump inhibitor" that reduces "the amount of hydrochloric acid produced by the stomach," the complaint states. This reduces the stomach's ability to kill harmful bacteria, it states. Plaintiffs claim the defendants "issued uniformly misleading advertisement and materials that failed to warn users of Prilosec OTC of their increased risk for food-borne diseases."

Plaintiffs are represented by Rex Elliott with Cooper & Elliott.

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