(The Philadelphia Inquirer: Published 12/23/2015, Mondics, Chris, Web)
A Philadelphia jury awarded $12.5 million to a woman who alleged that a vaginal mesh implant made by Johnson & Johnson caused her to have extreme pain during sex and required multiple corrective surgeries. The Common Pleas Court jury awarded $5.5 million in compensatory damages for her ongoing health problems and inability to have sex. The jury also awarded $7 million in damages to punish the health-care-products giant for having marketed an unsafe product.
During the portion of the trial devoted to determining whether the company should be subject to punitive damages – hurt financially for acting recklessly in selling Prolift – a company official testified the company had $108 million in Prolift sales from the time the product was launched in 2005 until it took it off the market in 2012, following complaints from women who had the implants. Pelvic mesh implants came into wide use a decade ago for treatment of a condition when the bladder and other organs, weakened by childbirth, sag over time into the vagina, causing urinary incontinence, pain during intercourse, and other maladies.
The lawyers at Liever, Hyman & Potter, P.C., are concerned for the safety of women and families in Reading, Berks County, PA, Pottsville, Schuylkill County, PA, and throughout Eastern and Central PA. The lawyers there handle personal injury claims, including claims for injuries or death caused by unsafe or dangerous products.
Call the experienced attorneys at Liever, Hyman & Potter if you or a family member was injured. Consultation is free. We can obtain the records for you if we investigate the case.
From the desk of Michael W. McGuckin, Esquire.