Endo Agrees to $830 Million Settlement over Vaginal Mesh Defect Claims
According to reports from the Wall Street Journal (subscription required) and the New York Times, Endo Health Solutions Inc. is prepared to pay $830 million to resolve approximately 20,000 lawsuits in which women alleged that the company’s transvaginal mesh (“TVM”) implants were defective and caused them injuries. The TVM devices were manufactured by American Medical Systems Holding, Inc., which Endo acquired in 2011.
As explained in prior posts on this blog, transvaginal mesh has been used to treat pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence (SUI), conditions common in older women whose pelvic muscles have weakened after pregnancy or childbirth. Unfortunately, the TVM devices have been identified as causing pelvic injuries, including severe pelvic pain, erosion of the mesh into adjacent pelvic organs, and painful sexual intercourse, leading to tens of thousands of lawsuits against American Medical, Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon division, and C.R. Bard.
Endo had already set aside a $250 million product liability reserve in connection with the TVM cases against it, and the announcement this week is likely to push the total settlement figure above $1 billion. To participate in the Endo settlement, plaintiffs are required to verify that they were implanted with the vaginal mesh and provide additional medical records.
If you or someone you care about has been harmed as the result of a vaginal mesh implant or other medical device, we urge you to contact an attorney in Sommers Schwartz’ Personal Injury Litigation Group today – we’re here to help.
Jason Thompson is a nationally board certified trial attorney and co-chairs Sommers Schwartz’s Complex Litigation Department. He has a formidable breadth of litigation experience, including class action and multidistrict litigation (MDL), and practices nationwide in both state and federal courts.