J&J case: Govt asks 'victims' to approach central or state panel

The government Tuesday issued a public notice stating that patients suffering from disability due to faulty articular surface replacement (ASR) hip implants can approach either the central expert committee or the state-level panel.

In case the affected patients intend to approach the central expert committee, they may write to the legal cell of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, FDA Bhavan on Kotla Road, New Delhi.

They may send an email on legalcell@cdsco.nic.in.

If the affected patients approach the state-level committee, they may write to the concerned state drug controller who will be the member secretary of the state-level committee.

The Centre, earlier this month, constituted the central expert committee under the chairmanship of R K Arya, director of Sports Injury Centre at Safdarjung Hospital, to determine the quantum of compensation to be given to patients who have faulty hip implants, manufactured by DePuy International, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.

Apart from the five-member expert panel, the Union Health Ministry has asked principle/health secretaries of all the states and the Union Territories to constitute separate committees so that they can receive such complaints from the affected patients.

The move came after a panel, constituted earlier by the Union Health Ministry to investigate complaints about articular surface replacement (ASR) hip implant devices, said in its report that the pharma giant "suppressed" facts on the harm of surgeries afterwards, which was conducted on patients in India using "faulty" hip replacement systems.

It had also suggested that the company pay compensation of around Rs 20 lakh to the affected patients. Some of the patients who had suffered due to the faulty implants had questioned the panel's recommendation of the paltry amount, saying it was like "rubbing salt into their wounds".

The Health Ministry, in its order dated August 30, has asked the central expert committee to submit its recommendation to the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) within 45 days of receiving recommendations from the state-level panels.

The order had said a committee under the chairmanship of Arun Kumar Aggarwal has given its report which has been accepted by the central government with certain modifications.

"Now the central government has decided to constitute a central expert committee to determine the quantum of compensation, as admissible under the law, in respect of faulty ASR hip implants manufactured by M/s DePuy International Limited, UK and implanted in India," the had order said.