The New York Times, "Maker of Vioxx Reports Progress of Suits"

          With the number of Vioxx-related lawsuits soaring, the drug maker Merck may consider offering settlements to plaintiffs in a few cases, the company's general counsel suggested yesterday.
          Merck had previously said that it planned to defend every personal-injury lawsuit filed over Vioxx, a painkiller and arthritis medicine that has been shown to raise the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
          But the general counsel, Kenneth C. Frazier, said in an interview yesterday that Merck would consider settling suits brought by people who took Vioxx for long periods of time and had few other risk factors for heart disease. Nearly 5,000 Vioxx suits have already been filed, and tens of thousands more are expected.
          Mr. Frazier's comments appear to represent a subtle but important shift in strategy for Merck, although he denied that the company had made any change in its position. The issue of possible settlements is extraordinarily sensitive for Merck because of the prospect that plaintiffs' lawyers might file many additional lawsuits if they believe that Merck is willing to settle any of them.
          But taking every case to trial also has risks, as Merck discovered last week when a jury found it liable for the death of a Texas man and ordered it to pay millions in the first Vioxx case to reach trial.