AG Paxton Announces $116.9 Million Multistate Settlement with Johnson & Johnson, Ethicon, Inc. for Deceptive Marketing of Surgical Mesh Medical Devices

AUSTIN, Texas — Attorney General Ken Paxton today announced a $116.9 million multistate settlement with Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary Ethicon, Inc. for deceptively marketing transvaginal surgical mesh devices. Under the settlement, Texas will receive $8,881,481.36.


The settlement was reached after a multistate investigation, launched in 2012, found that the companies failed to adequately disclose the products’ possible side effects, which include the risk of chronic pain and inflammation, mesh erosion through the vagina, incontinence developing after surgery, painful sexual relations, and vaginal scarring. Injunctive relief was also provided in the settlement requiring full disclosure of the device’s risks to patients and medical professionals.


The multistate investigation also revealed that the companies were fully aware of possible serious
medical complications but neglected to provide adequate warning to patients and their surgeons who implanted the devices. 


“This settlement sends a strong message that we will not allow the health of Texas women to be placed in jeopardy by unscrupulous businesses,” Attorney General Paxton said.  “Texans and their doctors deserve to make informed decisions based on good information without worrying that the providers of the drugs and medical devices they rely on have provided false or misleading information.”


Transvaginal surgical mesh is a synthetic material that is surgically implanted through the vagina to support the pelvic organs of women who suffer from stress urinary incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse.


Texas is joined by Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin.