Tort claims and federal regulation of medical devices vs pharmaceuticals.

摘要

To the Editor: In his Commentary on federal preemption of state tort claims regarding medical devices and pharma-ceuticals, Mr Gostin1 explained the critical public health issues and implicated public policy. He also remarked on the "apparently inconsistent decisions" by the US Supreme Court in Riegel v Medtronic Inc (finding suits for defective medical devices preempted) and Wyeth v Levine (no preemption for prescription drugs). From a public policy perspective, this inconsistency is even more perverse than Gostin explained.