Zantac settlement overview:
- Who: Sanofi settled 4,000 personal injury claims regarding its discontinued heartburn drug Zantac.
- Why: Consumers claim Zantac causes cancer.
- Where: The Zantac settlement applies to cases across the country.
Sanofi reached an undisclosed settlement in 4,000 personal injury claims, saying its discontinued heartburn drug Zantac causes cancer, Law360 reports.
The Zantac settlement involves the molecule ranitidine, which was found to degrade in some cases to a carcinogen called NDMA, or N-Nitrosodimethylamine, according to Law360.
Sanofi reportedly told Law360 its settlement is not an admission of guilt but an effort to “avoid the expense and ongoing distraction of the litigation.”
The settlement involves cases in California, New York and Connecticut but is separate from cases filed in Delaware, according to a Sanofi statement.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a voluntary Zantac recall in September 2019 despite the carcinogen levels being far below what would usually prompt an FDA recall, Law360 reports.
Judge dismissed many Zantac cancer claims in December 2022
Consumers filed tens of thousands of lawsuits against Sanofi, including thousands sent to a multidistrict litigation in the Southern District of Florida, according to Law360.
A federal judge in Florida dismissed many of the claims in December 2022, Sanofi says, finding no scientist linked Zantac to cancer.
“Given the lack of scientific evidence, the limited time during which Sanofi marketed Zantac and the fact that Sanofi acted responsibly at all times, we believe Sanofi’s exposure in this litigation is manageable in the ordinary course,” Sanofi says in a statement reported by Law360.
Sanofi and defendants such as Pfizer and Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. face thousands of Zantac lawsuits in Delaware in front of Superior Court Judge Vivian L. Medinilla, who is considering the evidence used to dismiss the Florida claims, according to Law360.
The Delaware cases include 75,000 claims that the drug caused 10 different cancers.
In February 2023, a federal judge in Florida ruled tens of thousands of consumers part of multi-plaintiff cases against Zantac manufacturers needed to file their claims separately after a court found no evidence Zantac’s active ingredient causes cancer.
Did you ever purchase or use Zantac? Let us know in the comments.
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