Johnson & Johnson is sweetening the pot in hopes of settling tens of thousands of cancer lawsuits accusing the company of exposing people to asbestos.
Johnson & Johnson is accused of exposing consumers to asbestos through the use of Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder and other brand products. The company filed for bankruptcy to avoid facing lawsuits or paying multi-million-dollar verdicts, as the company has had to do several times over the past few years.
The health care giant is adding $1.1 billion to its original proposal of $6.4 billion to settle pending lawsuits. Johnson & Johnson’s hope is the additional funding will convince plaintiff objectors with pending lawsuits to agree to the settlement proposal.
This is Johnson & Johnson’s third attempt to use bankruptcy to avoid lawsuits. The first two tries were rejected by the courts.
Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder and Asbestos
Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder is made with talc, which is a naturally occurring mineral. Talc is prized as a cosmetic ingredient for absorbing moisture and keeping skin dry.
Talc and asbestos are connected, however, since asbestos is also a naturally occurring mineral found in the same geographic areas. Asbestos can cause cancer, such as lung cancer, ovarian cancer and the rare cancer known as mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma is diagnosed in approximately 2,500 people in the United States each year. The cancer has poor survival rates due to how rare, aggressive and difficult it is to treat. Nearly all of the lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson were filed by people with ovarian cancer or mesothelioma.
How Is Johnson & Johnson Using the Texas Two-Step?
Johnson & Johnson is using a Chapter 11 bankruptcy tactic called the “Texas Two-Step.” This legal maneuver allows companies to avoid facing ovarian cancer and mesothelioma lawsuits.
Johnson & Johnson plans to create a subsidiary company to house all legal liabilities related to Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder and other talc products. Even though the company claims the products are safe and asbestos-free, it is still moving to settle the cases. This tactic moves all pending lawsuits into one massive settlement without requiring Johnson & Johnson to file for bankruptcy.
The bankruptcy proposal is relying on approval from 75% of the plaintiffs in pending lawsuits. Approval from 75% of the plaintiffs is required legally for a judge to approve this kind of bankruptcy settlement.
How Much Johnson & Johnson Plans to Pay Cancer Patients
The original proposal of $6.48 billion intends to resolve tens of thousands of ovarian cancer cases. The company claims the amount of actual cash paid over 25 years will total approximately $8 billion. Therefore, the additional $1.1 billion brings the total proposal above $9 billion over 25 years.
Future claims would be compensated from a fund set up through the subsidiary’s bankruptcy plan. This would be similar to an asbestos trust fund, which is created to compensate people who learn of their asbestos disease after the company went bankrupt.
Mesothelioma, for instance, develops 20-50 years after exposure to asbestos. The cancer can begin spreading and causing symptoms well after the victim was exposed to asbestos.
How Many Pending Lawsuits Are Against Johnson & Johnson?
According to news reports, there are at least 60,000 pending lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson. The majority of people affected by cancer from Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder are women, who applied the powder to themselves or their children.
Johnson & Johnson’s settlement proposal only applies to lawsuits for ovarian cancer. It would not settle pending mesothelioma lawsuits. Most of the pending lawsuits involve ovarian cancer, which is much more common than mesothelioma.
If you ever used Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder and have been diagnosed mesothelioma or ovarian cancer, contact the patient advocates at Mesothelioma Guide. They will explain your options for financial help and put you in touch with legal experts experienced in talc and asbestos claims. Email Carl Jewett at cjewett@mesotheliomaguide.com today.
Sources & Author
Johnson & Johnson adds $1.1 billion to proposed talc settlement. Reuters. Retrieved from: https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/johnson-johnson-wins-over-longtime-holdout-talc-settlement-wsj-reports-2024-09-04/. Accessed: 09/06/2024.
About the Writer, Devin Golden
Devin Golden is the senior content writer for Mesothelioma Guide. He produces mesothelioma-related content on various mediums, including the Mesothelioma Guide website and social media channels. Devin’s objective is to translate complex information regarding mesothelioma into informative, easily absorbable content to help patients and their loved ones.
