Toms River, NJ - Jackie Kelly Bozicev's young life came to an end on December 7, 2007 when the 32-year-old mother had a seizure in her home in front of her husband and her 2-year-old son. This Christmas was supposed to be the family’s first Christmas with the couple's newborn daughter, Mary Kelly. Robert Bozicev called an ambulance, but his wife died on the way to Community Medical Center.

On March 19, 2008, Mr. Bozicev's attorneys filed a wrongful death suit against Organon USA, Inc., which is the manufacturer and the distributor of the NuvaRing contraceptive device. The suit is also against the company that purchased Organon USA in 2007, Schering Plough Corp. They allege in the lawsuit that it is this device that left the man widowed and the children motherless.

The lawyers claim in the lawsuit that the NuvaRing manufacturer failed to disclose certain dangers of the device to the public, physicians, and pharmacists and failed to issue the appropriate warnings regarding any health risks. It also alleges that the data that was presented to the FDA claimed that the side-effects of NuvaRing were similar to the side effects of oral contraceptives.

A spokeswoman from Schering Plough has said they will vigorously defend themselves, but offered no further comment on the lawsuit.

As for NuvaRing, it is a plastic ring that is flexible enough to be manually placed within the vagina in order to deliver contraceptive medications automatically. The medications are forms of estrogen and progestin that prevents conception when used together. The progestin contained in NuvaRing has been associated with increased chances of blood clots, heart attacks, and strokes in those who use it, according to the lawsuit.

However, the manufacturer advertises the product as being a hassle-free contraceptive. The marketing tactics used by the company is meant to appeal to the younger contraceptive users by including such activities as horoscopes, fashion and entertainment news on their website.

The autopsy on Jackie Kelly Bozicev showed that she had died due to a massive pulmonary thromboemboli, which is an obstruction of the arteries in the lungs. The clot was located in the pelvic veins. Her mother said that Jackie was never sick in her life aside from the normal cold or sore throat and that she only had to be hospitalized twice when she delivered both of her children. She never smoked and didn't drink, so there was not much reason to worry about her health. Her mother further states that when the autopsy results showed the blood clot, that an immediate connection was made to the NuvaRing.

NuvaRing's website does state that the chance of blood clots is greater with the type of progestin that they use. It is not like the progestins used in low-dose birth-control. However, they do disclose that it is not known whether the risk is any different than with any type of birth control pill.

According to the attorneys for Bozicev, there have been no long-term studies on the risks associated with the NuvaRing, but the FDA did approve it in 2001. Currently, the product is subject to over 50 lawsuits, according to the attorneys for the plaintiff.