Hepatitis C-infected Austrians ‘sue Aventis’

HAMBURG, Germany, Feb 8 (AFP) – Sixty-three Austrians infected with Hepatitis C have filed suit against Franco-German pharmaceuticals giant Aventis blaming contaminated plasma injections, Der Spiegel news weekly reported in its issue to be published Monday.

The patients are claiming damages against Aventis, the parent company of Seroplas, responsible for the infusions.

In 2001, courts in the Austrian cities of Linz, Klagenfurt and Vienna awarded
EUR 7.5 million (USD 9.5 million) to 259 plaintiffs over the case based on insurance claims by Seroplas.

But this time, the insurance companies only offered each plaintiff one-third of the settlement amount.

“It is unacceptable to have second-class victims here,” Vienna-based lawyer Hans-Otto Schmidt told Der Spiegel.

© AFP

                                                              Subject: France news