A Florida woman sued Prozac maker Eli Lilly & Co. last week after getting a sample of Prozac in the mail.
The suit charges Indianapolis-based Lilly, the woman’s doctor, and her pharmacy with invasion of privacy and improper medical practice for targeted sampling to the woman, who takes depression medication but didn’t request or consent to receiving Prozac samples, according to an Associated Press report. Walgreens reportedly filled and mailed the sample prescriptions in exchange for reimbursement via product-sample coupons from Lilly.
State laws govern pharmacy practices, but the Federal Food & Drug Administration is watching the suit to see if it should intervene. Eli Lilly issued a statement that mailing unrequested samples is against its corporate policy.
This is Lilly’s second privacy gaffe this year. The firm earlier settled with the Federal Trade Commission after an e-mail reminder service for Prozac patients inadvertently listed the e-mail addresses of all subscribers in the “To” line of a message (March PROMO).
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