Becton Dickinson Hernia-Mesh settlements to exceed $1 billion

Becton Dickinson & Co. will pay more than $1 billion to settle more than 38,000 lawsuits alleging medical patients suffered organ damage from surgical mesh improperly used to treat hernias, according to people familiar with the business who were not authorized to speak in public.

Becton did not disclose the cost of the settlement it announced Wednesday, saying only that the deal resolves the “vast majority” of existing hernia claims with payments over several years. There was no mention of future claims. As of June 30, the company has allocated $1.7 billion to all of its product liability cases, including the mesh litigation, company filings show.

Hernia patients claimed that suppliers of the mesh’s components – made by Becton’s CR Bard and Davol units – warned the manufacturers that it was not suitable for implantation in humans, but the companies used it anyway. Becton officials dispute claims that the mesh was unsafe for surgical use. The company said it agreed to settle the dispute “to remove uncertainty” but did not admit any wrongdoing.

“Because the settlement is confidential, we are not commenting” on the specific size of the total payout or how long it will take to make all distributions, Troy Kirkpatrick, a Becton spokesman, said in an email Thursday.

Under the agreement, payments will be made over less than five years, according to people familiar with the deal.

The company said the settlement would not affect its cash flow goals because of its litigation reserves, which fell from $1.9 billion in September 2023 after reaching some settlements and paying legal fees.

In its statement Wednesday, Becton said it would “continue to vigorously defend itself” in cases where patients choose not to join the settlement.

Hernia mesh sales, which hit the market in 2002, generated an estimated $5 billion for Becton and other mesh makers in 2021, and the global market could reach more than $6.5 billion by 2032, they say the analysts. Doctors perform more than a million hernia surgeries each year in the US, many of which include contested meshes.

The settlement covers more than 38,000 hernia mesh suits, most of which are being brought before a federal judge in Columbus, Ohio. Other cases filed in Rhode Island state court are also eligible to participate in the out-of-court settlement.

The case is IN RE Davol/CR Bard Polypropylene Hernia Mesh Products Litigation, 2:18-md-2846, US District Court for the Southern District of Ohio (Columbus).

Photo: Photo credit: Michele Tantussi/Bloomberg

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