The Strategist

J&J sets aside $8.9B for lawsuits on cancer-causing baby powder



04/05/2023 - 03:48



The US pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson (J&J) announced that it would set aside $8.9 billion to resolve "all current and future" claims against the company's products. The company is facing lawsuits baby powder that allegedly causes cancer.



Mike Mozart
Mike Mozart
Allegations that Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder causes cancer due to asbestos in talcum powder have sparked more than 38,000 lawsuits against the business. Late in 2018, Reuters released results of its own probe into asbestos traces in baby powder.

The agency claimed that the business had been concealing information about asbestos impurities in talc from both the government and the public for decades. Numerous lawsuits were filed against Johnson & Johnson after the company declared that it would cease producing talc-based baby powder in the US and Canada in 2020.

According to a statement made by Johnson & Johnson, its subsidiary LTL Management has applied for bankruptcy at the US Court of Appeals "to seek approval of a reorganisation plan that will fairly and effectively resolve all claims arising from the cosmetic talcum powder litigation against the company (J&J)".

The company has "agreed to set aside" an amount of $8.9 billion, payable over 25 years, "to settle all current and future talcum powder claims," according to the press release. The funds would be distributed to recipients of the baby powder.

At that, the company noted that the allocation of the aforementioned sum and bankruptcy by LTL Management "does not constitute an admission of wrongdoing." The business stated that it hasn't altered its stance on the safety of cosmetic talcum powder.

source: reuters.com