Bayer has responded to a new Essure injuries lawsuit by asking the court to dismiss most of the plaintiffs’ claims and to sever the claims of others.

The plaintiffs in this action are 94 women from 30 different states who allegedly suffered complications after being implanted with the Essure birth control system.

These women claim the complications they suffered were in excess of what they were led to expect by the information provided by Bayer. They say the defendant failed to properly warn them about the risk of Essure injuries.

As part of their claims, the plaintiffs accuse Bayer of failing to comply with the conditions imposed by the FDA on its approval of Essure birth control. That approval was granted in 2002 on the condition that Bayer would follow up by submitting further post-market information about the device’s performance.

As Bayer notes in its motion, these women are part of a group of almost 800 plaintiffs divided among nine similar Essure lawsuits all originally filed against Bayer in a Missouri state circuit court in St Louis.

Bayer’s Motion for Dismissal

After removing this Essure lawsuit from Missouri court to federal court, Bayer now argues that claims brought by most of these women should be dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction.

Bayer points out that 80 of the named plaintiffs live outside the state of Missouri. Neither their use of Essure nor the complications that allegedly ensued have any connection to Missouri, Bayer says. Therefore, Bayer argues, the court has no jurisdiction over the out-of-state plaintiffs’ claims.

Furthermore, the fact that the plaintiffs all allege Essure injuries caused by the same medical device is no basis for their joining in a single Essure lawsuit, Bayer claims. The company says the non-Missouri plaintiffs have been fraudulently joined in this action solely in an attempt to eliminate federal court jurisdiction, thereby keeping the action in state court.

Bayer further argues that this action together with the eight similar actions already pending are all part of a single “mass action” over which the federal court has subject matter jurisdiction under the Class Action Fairness Act, or CAFA.

Bayer accuses the plaintiffs’ attorneys of purposely joining the plaintiffs into groups of less than 100 per action, in an attempt to avoid having this Essure lawsuit removed to federal court.

Essure Injuries at Core of Mass Litigation

The 94 plaintiffs in this Essure lawsuit are among hundreds of other claims alleging excessive complications resulted from their Essure implantation.

Women implanted with the Essure birth control system have reported developing complications that are intolerable, if not dangerous. Patients have reported chronic abdominal pain following implantation, and some have developed allergic reactions due to metal allergies.

In some cases, the Essure implants have migrated out of their proper position inside the fallopian tubes. Women say their implants have perforated the fallopian tubes and surrounding organs. Still more women have reported getting pregnant despite Bayer’s representation that Essure is almost completely effective.

The Essure Injuries Lawsuit is Case No. 4:16-cv-01679 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.