*New* Endo to Resolve All U.S. Pelvic Mesh Product Liability Claims

Mesh Medical Device News Desk, August 8, 2017 ~ Endo International has set aside $775 million to bring to a close its outstanding pelvic mesh U.S. and international claims, according to the Dublin, Ireland-based company.

Endo International, which owns the American Medical Systems (AMS) pelvic mesh lawsuits, has agreed to settle the 22,000 unresolved pelvic mesh product liability lawsuits that have been lingering in court, according to a press release (here) the Wall Street Journal.

The company will set aside $775 million to resolve the last lawsuits, bringing to a total of more than $3.58 billion paid to settle lawsuits filed by women who claim they were injured by the allegedly defective devices made by AMS.

Endo will make installment payments beginning in the fourth quarter of 2017 and continuing through the fourth quarter of 2019, according to a company statement. The press release says it will resolve both U.S. "as well as all known international mesh product liability claims and other mesh-related matters."

See Endo statements here.

At the present time there are 21,127 defective product cases amassed against Endo, filed in federal court in Charleston, West Virginia.

Johnson & Johnson is facing almost 39,000 alone in Charleston and thousands more in New Jersey as well as cases filed around the country. The other large mesh maker, Boston Scientific, has 25,029 cases consolidated in the federal court in Charleston, West Virginia.

Judge Joseph Goodwin had announced to lawyers earlier this year that he wanted to resolve all 104,000 cases before him in multidistrict litigation in WV.

“While it remains possible that additional claims will be filed, we believe today’s announcement will assist most mesh claimants to move forward with their lives and will permit Endo to move forward,” said Chief Executive Paul Campanelli in prepared remarks.

The company said it is in talks to resolve the remaining known U.S. claims at “reasonable values" reports the WSJ.

Suzanne and her pups

One woman, Samantha, who had a Caldera claim filed against AMS over its patented surgical tools used in the Caldera mesh kit. The law firm overseeing AMS/Endo $1.6 billion Qualified Settlement Fund told her, in a series of emails, that no more settlements would be paid.

See the MND background story here.

This is good news for mesh-injured claimants like Suzanne, (not her real name), who was implanted with an AMS TVT-O in 2012. Because there have been no trials involving AMS transvaginal mesh, she is one of thousands who are lingering, awaiting an offer from the company to settle.

Read her MND story here.

AMS/ENDO SETTLEMENTS TO DATE

Monarc by AMS for SUI

In April 2014, AMS/Endo agreed to an $830 million settlement fund to resolve about 20,000 claims. One year earlier, AMS/Endo announced a $54.5 million settlement to resolve pelvic mesh lawsuits.

In September 2014, AMS/Endo announced a master settlement of $1.6 billion to resolve the lawsuits.

Valued at $2 billion, Endo purchased American Medical Systems urology products for $2.9 billion in 2011. See the story here.

In March 2015, Endo International announced it sold the urology division to Boston Scientific for up to $1.65 billion. The women’s health division was renamed as Astora Women’s Health.

Astora Women’s Health was closed by Endo in March 2016 due to litigation costs. Astora announced it had suspended all commercial activity and is no longer making or distributing any women’s health products. See the MND story here.

AMS PELVIC MESHES

POP mesh, Elevate by AMS

AMS made the Apogee and Perigee Systems, ElevateTM Anterior and Posterior Pelvic Floor Repair System and IntePro Y sling to treat pelvic organ prolapse. The MiniArc, RetroArc, Monarc, In-Fast, BioArc and SPARC slings all treat stress urinary incontinence.

Since it took Apogee off the market, AMS no longer has to conduct FDA mandated three years of post approval monitoring on those models of pelvic mesh products.

The company reported second-quarter revenues of $876 million, a 5% decrease from the same time period of 2016. The loss of its opioid drug, Opana ER, withdrawn from the market, cut sharply into revenues. ###