Johnson & Johnson Told to Pay $4.69 Billion to Women Claiming Talcum Powder Gave Them Cancer
Johnson & Johnson was ordered to pay a staggering $4.14 billion in damages to a group of women who claimed that the talc powder made by the company caused them to contract ovarian cancer. Together with the $550 million in compensatory damages ordered by the jury, the total adds up to $4.69 billion.
The jury, which reached the verdict on Thursday, July 12, on a unanimous vote, chose to award the 22 plaintiffs in the case an average of $25 million each, according to Time Magazine.
The total amount as ordered by the jury in a court in Missouri marks a milestone as the largest jury award yet in the U.S. as of this year, and also the sixth largest award from a product-related claim in the history of the country.
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Members of the jury deliberated on the verdict for about eight hours on Thursday after weeks of hearing the testimony of experts who claimed that the talcum powder manufactured by Johnson & Johnson is safe to use.
They have also heard from the side of the plaintiffs, six of whom have already died from cancer. They then decided that the claims of the cancer patients, that their ovarian cancer could be linked to possible asbestos in the powder products, has significant merit.
While the science of how talcum powder can potentially lead to a risk of cancer is still up for debate, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration confirmed that it has not found asbestos in any of the talcum products the agency examined, according to NBC News.
Talcum powders for consumer use are highly refined products that are commonly screened for asbestos as well, according to the American Cancer Society. "All talcum products used in homes in the United States have been asbestos-free since the 1970s," the group pointed out.
Johnson & Johnson plans to appeal the verdict.
