Weekly Mass Torts Bulletin 2021-July-5
J&J To Pay $230M In NY Opioid Lawsuits Settlement
An Attorney general announced a $230 million settlement between Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and New York state and two Long Island counties where the opioid manufacturer has agreed to discontinue the nationwide opioid sale.
The decision was made considering the larger global settlement, which is still in talks among the parties. The settlement has prevented the opioid manufacturer from facing an upcoming trial to begin in Long Island.
The Attorney General stated that the opioid epidemic has resulted in chaos throughout the country by affecting countless communities across New York State and the rest of the nation. He stated the addictive drug, which is very dangerous and deadly, affected millions of individuals in the U.S. and held J&J as the prime culprit for fuelling the epidemic. The manufacturers promised to discontinue the sale of opioids across the nation, which will eventually help to end the opioids epidemic.
Suffolk and Nassau are the two Long Island counties involved in the settlement that would be paid over nine years. The counsel for Suffolk County stated that it completely supports the agreement, as the funds received from the settlement will be helpful to address the devastating effects on the opioid-affected areas.
Another two opioid epidemic bench trials are ongoing in California state court and West Virginia federal court. In 2019, J&J lost the first opioid trial in Oklahoma state court as the judge ruled a $465 million verdict considering that the manufacturer created a public nuisance by deceptive marketing. Earlier in a California trial, the drug companies blamed OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP for the epidemic.
An official of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will give a key testimony in the trial, and the manufacturers of opioids have appealed to the court to refrain from it based on him being a federal official. However, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a memo stating that the FDA official's testimony can be considered.
NY State To Formulate A Lockbox In Opioid Settlements
Gov. Andrew Cuomo will oversee a bill that has bipartisan support, the backing of state Attorney General Letitia James and requires New York state to formulate a lockbox that will fund the future opioid drug manufacturer settlements.
Cuomo has a history of putting the settlement money in the state’s general budget fund, which would be changed as the bill is supported by the state Attorney General Letitia James.
The bill will help in accumulating funds from the settlements for recovery services like hiring counselors and generating beds in opioid addiction treatment centers. These funds would not be used to replace the existing state funding services.
Purdue Pharma and members of the Sackler family control Johnson & Johnson and other drug manufacturers who are accused of fuelling the opioid epidemic throughout the nation will face strong legal action from James and other attorneys general involved in the opioid litigation.
The settlements are anticipated to be worth as much as $26 billion nationally. The money will be used to restore the harm caused by the drug manufacturers that led to numerous deaths and pain.
Earlier, a similar bill was introduced by a state senator from Binghamton to help the people affected by the epidemic. The senator even said that it is a core responsibility of all federal officials to ensure that the settlement amount is efficiently reached to the community-based providers who are providing lifesaving services to deal with the epidemic.
Previously, McKinsey and Company lost an agreement to the attorney general that ordered the company to pay half a billion dollars to states. New York received $32 million from the agreement, out of which $11 million was reserved for addiction treatment services, and $21 million was deposited in the general budget fund.
Juul Will Pay $40M To North Carolina In Teen Vaping Settlement
A federal jury announced a landmark settlement that orders electronic cigarette giant Juul Labs Inc. to pay $40 million to North Carolina in litigation that accuses the company of fueling teen vaping.
It is first of its kind agreement with a state. North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein sued the company by placing allegations that Juul’s unfair and deceptive marketing strategies encouraged the use of vaping products among the youth.
The agreement states that the vaping manufacturer Juul will no longer advertise its products to anyone under 21 in North Carolina. It also states that the company should limit the sales of its products by selling only behind counters at retailers who have ID scanners that will detect the customer's age.
Juul launched e-cigarettes in 2015 post which the use of the products raised to 70% among the teens. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration declared it as an epidemic of underage vaping due to the significant growth in the number of vapers. Vaping products have nicotine which is very addictive and prevents brain development, as stated by the health experts.
A spokesperson for Juul said that the company is already experiencing a decline in the sale of its products post the discontinuation of advertising and social media promotion. The company is effectively looking forward to combating underage vaping by taking necessary measures.
Juul faces individual lawsuits from several states, and since February 2020, a group of 39 state attorneys general is cooperatively investigating the company’s marketing and products. The company even faces hundreds of personal injury lawsuits, which include claims from customers and families of young people affected because of vaping. All these lawsuits are consolidated before Judge William H. Orrick in a California federal court.
Ga. Talc Co. Asks To Dismiss Strict Liability Cancer Claim
Johnson & Johnson (J&J) talcum powder manufacturer PTI Royston LLC has asked the Georgia Court of Appeals to dismiss strict liability claims that allege the powder caused ovarian cancer to a woman.
The lawsuit was filed in December 2019. The plaintiff was diagnosed with cancer in 2016, and as per the Georgia Asbestos Act of 2007, there is a 10-year period to file the suit. However, the manufacturer claimed that the 10-year period to file the suit should be considered from 1963 when the woman first started using the product.
An attorney for Royston said that it should be the court's decision to consider the Asbestos Act with the statute of repose in the lawsuit. The attorney even said that the court wrongly held that Georgia's statute of repose was superseded by the Georgia Asbestos Act in this case.
The attorney for the plaintiff argued that usage of talc products would not show up the signs of cancer for decades in some cases, so it is unfair to consider the ten years of the latency period. He even informed that the plaintiff was exposed to talc for so many years yet the first signs of cancer showed to her in 2016 when she received medical evidence for ovarian cancer.
The plaintiff's attorney even highlighted in his arguments that J&J was aware of the presence of asbestos in its talcum powder, yet it did not take necessary measures to extract asbestos from its baby powder, neither did the company put any warning on the products.
Royston manufactured J&J's baby powder in Georgia from August 2005 through 2019. In 2020, J&J discontinued the sale of its baby powder in the United States, but the products are still available in the international market without any warning issuance from the company.
Louisiana Resident Secures $8.2M Verdict In Mesothelioma Lawsuit
A Louisiana resident who was diagnosed with Mesothelioma, a rare and fatal cancer caused by asbestos exposure, secured an $8.2 million verdict against Ford Motor Company.
As per the court documents, the plaintiff was serving as a gas station and school bus mechanic in the 1960s and '70s. He used to work on repairing brakes and clutches of vehicles manufactured by Ford when he was exposed to asbestos. The jury awarded the plaintiff with compensatory damages of $8,261,874 by stating that Ford was negligent and failed to warn the plaintiff about the hazards of asbestos exposure.
The attorney for the plaintiff said that no amount of money might compensate for the loss suffered by the plaintiff in terms of his health, but the settlement will surely give some relief to him and his family to a certain extent.
The threats of asbestos have been traced since the early 1900s. Exposure to asbestos results in asbestos fibers getting stuck in the person's lungs resulting in Mesothelioma, which can take decades to form and has a long latency period with no cure.
Cancer has disrupted the plaintiff's life drastically as before his diagnosis of Mesothelioma, he was living an active with his loved ones, but the scenario has changed since he contracted the disease. The news of he being diagnosed with Mesothelioma is heart drenching for him and his family.
The law firm that represented the plaintiff has won eight asbestos verdicts in the past four years for Mesothelioma patients.
Overexposure to asbestos can also lead to lung cancer, ovarian cancer and laryngeal cancer. Talcum products are alleged of causing ovarian cancer linked to the presence of asbestos. Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is the leading manufacturer of talc products and currently faces several lawsuits across the U.S. claiming that its products cause cancer among users.
New Hanover County Could Get $19M In Opioid Litigation
New Hanover County and the city of Wilmington could receive $19 million-$20 million and $850,000 respectively in multistate lawsuits involving drug manufacturers and distributors to tackle the opioid epidemic.
The lawsuits allege that the drug manufacturers and distributors are responsible for fuelling the opioid epidemic in the county and the city. The settlement amount is just an estimation that might change if required. Drug distributors Cardinal, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen and opioid manufacturers Johnson & Johnson and Purdue Pharma are liable to make the settlements in the lawsuits.
Earlier, in February, the attorney general ordered a $573 million multistate settlement against McKinsey & Company as the management consultant alleged advising Purdue about maximizing profits by increasing the sale of opioid products.
Currently, 76 counties and eight municipalities are involved in litigation against the opioid manufacturers and distributors; now, hundreds of state counties stand a chance to sign the five-company agreement by Oct. 1.
The executive director of the county commissioners group said that the current arrangement of the settlement would provide 15% of state settlement funds in direct payments to local governments, which is comparatively less.
36 counties and 10 municipalities have signed the agreement until now. The share of the New Hanover County's fund stands at 2.897%, whereas the city of Wilmington’s share stands at 0.119%. The chief communications officer of New Hanover County said that the share distribution is drafted by the experts employed by the outside counsel for local governments.
Participants signing the agreement need to follow governing rules set by the attorney general, which has two options.
Option A: Local governments have complete right to use the funds for various initiatives like funding programs or services, evidence-based addiction treatment, naloxone distribution, recovery housing support, employment-related services, criminal justice diversion programs, etc.
Option B: Authorities may involve in a collaborative strategic planning process in coordination with community stakeholders who would help develop plans to address issues of over-prescription or misuse of opioids.
The New Hanover County will effectively work with the city of Wilmington to make sure that the funds are efficiently used for the ones who need them.
Retailers & Pharmacies Excluded From Zantac MDL
A Florida federal judge has ordered to exclude the pharmacies and retailers in Zantac multidistrict litigation by stating that the Zantac manufacturers are to be blamed for carcinogen forming in the drug.
Walgreen Co., The Kroger Co., Albertsons Cos. Inc., CVS Pharmacy Inc., Costco Wholesale Corp., Amazon.com Inc., and a few companies are freed from the Zantac claims as ordered by the U.S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg.
The consumers alleged that the retailers, pharmacies, and distributors were negligent while storing Zantac, which resulted in forming of carcinogen in the drug, which is harmful to the users. Whereas the retailers and pharmacies argued that they were not responsible for carcinogens found in Zantac, even Judge Robin L. Rosenberg agreed with the retailers and pharmacies by rejecting the consumers' appeal.
The judge said that the defendants involved in the lawsuits are large companies, and the court requires at least one concrete allegation of the breach to support the claim of a systematic failure of the manufacturers in Zantac litigation.
The judge even said that the court didn't restrict the plaintiffs from investigating if the defendants had deliberately exposed the drug to heat or failed to maintain the required parameters while storing it.
Sanofi SA, Pfizer Inc., Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc., and GlaxoSmithKline PLC are some of the major defendants involved in the Zantac MDL, along with generic-drug makers, retailers, distributors, and active pharmaceutical ingredient makers. All of them face similar claims of false advertising, failure to warn, and other claims regarding NDMA in the medication.
In 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration detected traces of NDMA in Zantac and issued a warning to the manufacturers. In 2020, the agency mandated to put a label on the products stating that storing the drug in higher temperatures can result in higher levels of the carcinogen.