Quaids file lawsuit against drug maker

BEIJING, Dec. 5 (Xinhuanet) -- U.S. actor Dennis Quaid and his wife filed a lawsuit against the makers of heparin Tuesday after their newborn twins mistakenly being given a massive overdose of this blood thinning drug at a hospital, media reported Wednesday.

The couple filed the lawsuit in Chicago and sought more than 50,000 U.S. dollars in damages. They alleged that Baxter Healthcare Corp., the drug maker, was negligent in packaging different doses of the product in similar vials.

The lawsuit also says the company should have recalled the large-dosage vials after overdoses killed three children at an Indianapolis hospital last year.

The company spokeswoman declined to comment on the lawsuit and said it was about improper use of a product instead of a product issue.

The Quaid twins, Thomas Boone and Zoe Grace, were born via a surrogate mother on Nov. 8.

The hospital had apologized for what it called the "preventable error" and the twins had recovered in a Los Angeles hospital last week.

(Agencies)