Medical Device Safety Act of 2009

After the Supreme Court rejected Wyeth's preemption claim in Wyeth v. Levine, Congress took steps to reverse the Supreme Court's earlier preemption decision, Riegel v. Medtronic, Inc. House representatives Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Henry Waxman (D-CA) introduced the Medical Device Safety Act of 2009 to "protect[] patients from dangerous and defective devises by correcting the Court's flawed interpretation of the MDA." In effect, the Act restores state product liability lawsuits and restores the private attorney general's role in bringing suit. NYU recently held a symposium on the broader idea of Tort Law in the Shadow of Preemption. The symposia should be forthcoming in the NYU Annual Survey of American Law.

ECB