Judge denies class in Fosamax cases against Merck

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. federal judge has denied motions to certify classes of users of osteoporosis drug Fosamax who wanted Merck & Co (MRK.N) to set up a program to monitor them for an ailment involving jaw bone decay.

U.S. District Judge John Keenan in a ruling dated Thursday denied motions to approve classes of current and former users of the popular drug in Pennsylvania, Florida and Louisiana who have not been diagnosed with the ailment.

"The court finds that class-treatment of these claims is inappropriate because they present too many individual questions of fact particular to each class member's claim," Keenan wrote in a 41-page ruling.

More than 360 federal product liability cases have been filed against Merck by people who claim to have taken Fosamax, according to the ruling.

They allege that Fosamax caused the plaintiffs to either develop the ailment, known as osteonecrosis of the jaw, or to suffer an increased risk of developing the condition in the future, Keenan wrote.

Plaintiffs' lawyer Timothy O'Brien said funding the program in the three states would have cost Merck hundreds of millions of dollars. But he added that he expected Merck's liability on the personal injury cases would exceed that.

O'Brien, of law firm Levin Papantonio, estimated that the number of cases in federal and state courts would increase to 1,500 to 2,000 by the end of the year from roughly 460 now.

The first federal cases are expected to go to trial at the end of the year, O'Brien said.

Merck's lawyer, Paul Strain, said the company is defending the lawsuits vigorously.

"We believe that there is no scientific evidence establishing that Fosamax causes this condition," Strain said. "We believe we have meritorious defenses."

Merck expects Fosamax sales of about $3 billion for 2007, but the company expects sales to fall dramatically in 2008 as generic rivals hit the market.

(Reporting by Paritosh Bansal, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)