Glaxo to pay $460 mln in settlement

GlaxoSmithKline Plc has agreed to pay about $460 million to resolve a majority of the lawsuits alleging its Avandia diabetes drug caused heart attacks and strokes, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.

Glaxo has agreed to settle about 10,000 cases at an average of at least $46,000 each, the report said, citing unnamed sources.

Analysts estimate the drugmaker faces about 13,000 Avandia lawsuits alleging personal injuries.

A Glaxo spokeswoman declined to comment.

The report comes as Glaxo defended Avandia's safety during a two-day meeting of U.S. health advisers who are weighing whether the medicine is too dangerous to stay on the market. (Reuters Health – 13 July 2010)