On March 15, 2009, the New York Times ran an editorial supporting the idea that patients victimized by defective medical devices should have their rights to sue manufacturers restored. These historical rights were invalidated last year when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that device makers could not be sued for damages in state courts if the device was approved by the F.D.A. As the Times put it,

"Now that the Supreme Court has ruled that patients can sue drug companies in state courts for harm caused by medicines approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Congress ought to give patients the same right to sue makers of medical devices."

The editorial concluded that suits in state courts should reinforce federal regulations, and that patients hurt by faulty medical devices should have the right to seek redress there. Read a copy of the full editorial [NY Times].