A jury found Friday that Abbott Laboratories’ specialty baby formula caused an Illinois girl to develop a dangerous intestinal illness and ordered the medical company to pay $495 million in damages.
The ruling in a state court in St. Louis, Missouri, was the first against the company among hundreds of similar lawsuits over the formula pending in courts across the country and viewed by Reuters via the Courtroom View Network.
Illinois resident Margo Gill sued Abbott, alleging that the company failed to warn that its formula could cause a deadly disease in premature infants called necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC).
The jury awarded her $95 million in compensatory damages and $400 million in punitive damages.
The jury verdict was not unanimous, with nine of the 12 jurors in the case supporting it. A three-quarters majority of jurors is required to reach a verdict in a Missouri civil case.
“Companies need to be honest about their products, both the good and the bad,” said Gill’s lawyer, Jack Garvey.
“If there are risks to using formula for premature babies, parents have a right to know what is at stake.”
Prime Minister Abbott said he strongly disagrees with the ruling and will seek to have it overturned.
Abbott spokesman Scott Stoffel said specialized formulas and supplements like those in this case are one of the few options available for premature babies.
“These rulings ignore the science and opinions of medical professionals who dedicate their lives to treating these babies, and make it difficult for us to continue supplying these products indefinitely,” Stoffel said.
NEC, which causes the death of intestinal tissue, primarily affects premature infants, with a mortality rate ranging from 15% to 40%.
Gill’s child, Robin Davis, developed NEC after being fed Abbott premature infant formula while in the neonatal intensive care unit in 2021, and although she survived, she suffered irreversible neurological damage as a result of the disease and will require long-term care.
Lawyers for Abbott, maker of Similac brand baby formula, argued in court that Robin’s long-term disabilities were caused by a birth injury that deprived her brain of oxygen.
Breast milk reduces the risk of NEC, but premature babies need special formula, which can be life-saving, the researchers said.
Nearly 1,000 lawsuits have been filed in federal or state courts against Abbott, Enfamil powder maker Reckitt Benckiser, or both.
More than 500 cases are concentrated in Illinois federal court, with additional cases pending in Illinois, Missouri and Pennsylvania.
The lawsuit alleges that the department failed to warn doctors that formula-fed infants were at higher risk of NEC than infants fed breast milk, donor milk, or breast-milk-derived formula.
Reckitt has denied the allegations, as has Abbott.
Like all of the cases surrounding the NEC, Friday’s lawsuit concerns cow’s milk-based powdered milk and breastmilk fortified products made specifically for infants in hospitals, rather than regular powdered milk available to consumers over the counter.
The first lawsuit against Reckitt in Illinois ended in a $60 million jury verdict in March. Reckitt is appealing the verdict, arguing that the plaintiffs’ claims were based on unsubstantiated expert testimony.
The lawsuit has some investors concerned.
Reckitt’s shares fell about 15 percent after the ruling in March and have never fully recovered.
The NEC Society, a patient-led nonprofit organization fighting the disease, criticized the lawsuit, saying “decisions about diet should be made at the patient’s bedside, not in a courtroom.”
The NEC lawsuit is separate from ongoing litigation against Abbott over the closure of its Sturgis, Michigan, plant and subsequent recall of formula milk due to alleged contamination, which contributed to a nationwide formula milk shortage in 2022.
No trials have been held in these cases.
