Vioxx Plaintiffs Failed to Prove Their Cases

WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 19, 2007 - A state court judge in Los Angeles today declared two mistrials after a jury failed to return verdicts in cases filed by two plaintiffs who alleged VIOXX contributed to their heart attacks.

"Both plaintiffs failed to prove their case," said Thomas Yoo of Reed Smith, a member of the defense team in Appell v. Merck and Arrigale v. Merck. "The evidence showed Merck acted responsibly in providing information to the medical, scientific and regulatory communities. We are fully prepared to defend these cases if they are tried again."

"All of the VIOXX cases are individual claims involving very different circumstances so we need to consider the facts of each case on an individual basis," said Kenneth C. Frazier, executive vice president and general counsel of Merck. "Heart attacks are unfortunately common in the population and caused by many different risk factors."

In the two-plaintiff trial, Lawrence Appell of Scottsdale, Arizona, alleged he used VIOXX for 18 months before suffering a heart attack, at age 51, on December 23, 2000. He continued to use VIOXX until September 2004. The other plaintiff, Rudolph Arrigale of Westminster, California, alleged he took VIOXX for 4-1/2 months before his heart attack at age 72 on March 18, 2002.

In December 2005, a federal judge in New Orleans declared a mistrial in the first federal trial when that jury was unable to reach a verdict. The case was subsequently retried and a new jury found in favor of Merck.

Merck was represented by Steve Raber and Eva Esber of Williams & Connolly in Washington, D.C.; Ralph A. Campillo of Sedgwick, Detert, Moran & Arnold in Los Angeles, and Thomas Yoo of Reed Smith in Los Angeles.

California Superior Court Judge Victoria Chaney presided.

Status of Litigation

As of September 30, 2006, the claims related to more than 3,000 alleged VIOXX users have been dismissed before being scheduled for trial. Of those, more than 1,100 were dismissed with prejudice either by plaintiffs themselves or by judges, meaning they cannot be filed again. Another 2,000 were dismissed without prejudice.

Of the 28 plaintiffs whose claims have been scheduled for trial, including the two plaintiffs in this trial, the claims of six were dismissed, the claims of seven were withdrawn from the trial calendar by plaintiffs, juries have decided in Merck's favor nine times and in plaintiffs' favor four times, and there have been three mistrials (one of which has since been retried to a verdict). A state judge set aside one of the nine Merck verdicts.

As for the four plaintiffs' verdicts, Merck already has filed an appeal or sought judicial review in each of those cases, and in one of those four, a federal judge overturned the damage award shortly after trial.

For information regarding additional cases scheduled for trial in 2007 visit http://www.merck.com/newsroom/vioxx/.

About Merck

Merck & Co., Inc. is a global research-driven pharmaceutical company dedicated to putting patients first. Established in 1891, Merck currently discovers, develops, manufactures and markets vaccines and medicines to address unmet medical needs. The Company devotes extensive efforts to increase access to medicines through far-reaching programs that not only donate Merck medicines but help deliver them to the people who need them. Merck also publishes unbiased health information as a not-for-profit service. For more information, visit www.merck.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause results to differ materially from those set forth in the statements. The forward-looking statements may include statements regarding product development, product potential or financial performance. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed, and actual results may differ materially from those projected. Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Forward-looking statements in this press release should be evaluated together with the many uncertainties that affect Merck's business, particularly those mentioned in the cautionary statements in Item 1 of Merck's Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2005, and in its periodic reports on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K, which the Company incorporates by reference.

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Merck & Co.
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