Vioxx suits surge to beat deadline
(AP)


<p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/health/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060930/ap_on_he_me/na_fin_us_vioxx_anniversary"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060929/capt.3cbfd7cca08b44009b8e97301b977a04.vioxx_federal_trial_ny114.jpg?x=130&y=115&sig=BTUjKTIN7lRSSbKULH3EnA--" align="left" height="115" width="130" alt="Vioxx is arranged on a counting tray, laying on top of the bottle, at The Pennington Apothecary in a Pennington, N.J. file photo from Sept. 30, 2004. A federal jury ruled in favor of Merck & Co. Inc. on Tuesday,Sept. 26, 2006, in a lawsuit over the painkiller Vioxx, finding there was not enough evidence to link the drug to a Kentucky man's heart attack. (AP Photo/Daniel Hulshizer, File)" border="0" /></a>AP - A surge of lawsuits has swamped courthouses just ahead of the two-year anniversary of drugmaker Merck & Co. pulling its blockbuster painkiller Vioxx from the market.</p><br clear="all"/>