Wash. Transvaginal Mesh Class Action Settlement

UPDATE : Top Class Actions viewers report they started receiving payments of up to $21,646.17 from the Washington transvaginal mesh class action settlement in late January 2021. Congratulations to everyone who filed a claim and got PAID!

Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay $9.9 million to resolve claims stating that their transvaginal mesh products are defective.

The settlement benefits all Washington women who received transvaginal mesh implants. The Washington State Attorney General estimates that around 45,000 women may be affected by this settlement.

Women are eligible even if they have already received money from another settlement, if their mesh implants were not manufactured by Johnson & Johnson, or if they haven’t suffered from any health complications or monetary losses.

In May 2016, the Washington State Attorney General took action against Johnson & Johnson in a lawsuit accusing the company of “failing to include several serious, life-altering risks associated with its surgical [transvaginal] mesh devices in materials for patients and doctors.”

Transvaginal mesh products are sling-like devices used to treat urinary incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse by securing the pelvic organs. Unfortunately, many women have reported serious complications arising from these devices.

These complications prompted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reclassify the medical devices into class III, meaning that premarket approval applications – the FDA’s “most stringent device review pathway” – were required in order to approve the devices. According to the agency, all manufacturers subsequently stopped selling their surgical devices for transvaginal mesh uses.

“Therefore, there are no FDA-approved surgical mesh products for transvaginal repair of prolapse marketed for use in the U.S.,” the FDA notes.

Despite regulatory action, the Washington AG aimed to hold Johnson & Johnson responsible for complications suffered by women following transvaginal mesh surgery. In 2019, the company paid $9.9 million to resolve the claims against them but did not admit any wrongdoing.

Although Johnson & Johnson is the company that funded the settlement, the Washington Attorney General has not limited the settlement to meshes manufactured by the company. Instead, Washington residents can make a claim for any transvaginal mesh product. Payment information is not currently available but AG Bob Ferguson notes that women are eligible to receive compensation from the settlement fund.

“We are now providing millions of dollars in relief to all women who received these devices in Washington,” Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement. “No amount of money will ever be enough to make women whole if they were injured by Johnson & Johnson’s surgical mesh products. But I deeply hope that it helps provide a measure of justice.”

In order to benefit from the settlement, Class Members must file a valid claim form by June 11, 2020. No documentation is required to validate claims. Instead, claims must include approximate information about the implant manufacturer, number of implants, date of implant, and location of the implant surgery. Specific medical records or documentation are not required.

The settlement was granted approval by the court on April 22, 2019.

Who’s Eligible

All Washington women who received transvaginal mesh implants. Women are eligible even if they have already received money from another settlement, if their mesh implants were not manufactured by Johnson & Johnson, or if they haven’t suffered from any health complications or monetary losses.

Potential Award

Information about payment amounts is not currently available.

Proof of Purchase

Claims require a variety of information including:

• Manufacturer of implant (an “unknown” option is available if claimants don’t remember the manufacturer);
• Number of implants;
• Approximate date of implant surgery; and
• Location of implant surgery (city and state).

Medical records or implant documentation are not required to validate a claim. Although these documents may be needed if the settlement administrator has further questions, the documentation should not be submitted with initial claims.

Claim Form

CLICK HERE TO FILE A CLAIM »

NOTE: If you do not qualify for this settlement do NOT file a claim.

Remember: you are submitting your claim under penalty of perjury. You are also harming other eligible Class Members by submitting a fraudulent claim. If you’re unsure if you qualify, please read the FAQ section of the Settlement Administrator’s website to ensure you meet all standards (Top Class Actions is not a Settlement Administrator). If you don’t qualify for this settlement, check out our database of other open class action settlements you may be eligible for.

Claim Form Deadline

6/11/2020

Case Name

State of Washington v. Johnson & Johnson, et al., Case No. 16-2-12186-1-SEA, in the Superior Court of the State of Washington in and for the County of King

Final Hearing

4/22/2019

Settlement Website

WAAGMeshSettlement.com

Claims Administrator

Washington State Transvaginal Mesh Fund Administrator – 6741
c/o Rust Consulting
P.O. Box 44
Minneapolis, MN 55440-0044
[email protected]

Class Counsel

Daniel L. Allen
WASHINGTON ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL

Defense Counsel

William Craco
Shelly Goldklang
JOHNSON & JOHNSON LAW DEPARTMENT

Stephen Brody
O’MELVENY & MYERS LLP

Angelo Calfo
CALFO EAKES & OSTROVSKY PLLC

Carolyn Kubota
COVINGTON & BURLING LLP

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