More DePuy ASR Cases May Settle As Recalled Hips Continue to Fail: Report

Another major settlement for DePuy ASR hip lawsuits may be announced soon, according to a recent report by Bloomberg News, which suggest that the medical device maker will pay another $250 million to resolve about 1,000 more cases.

Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy Orthopaedics subsidiary previously agreed to pay at least $2.4 billion in hip settlements late last year, resolving about 8,000 lawsuits brought by individuals who had their implant fail prior to August 31, 2013.

The original settlement called for Johnson & Johnson to pay about $250,000 for each hip patient who required replacement of a DePuy ASR hip at least 180 days after it was implanted. In addition, the medical device manufacture agreed to directly cover medical costs associated with the hip, which estimates suggested could drive the total cost of the original deal to more than $4 billion.

Even as payments are being made under the original settlement program, DePuy continued to face thousands of lawsuits brought by individuals who received one of the recalled implants, but did not have their device fail prior to the August 2013 cut off.

Bloomberg News reports that sources familiar with the negotiations indicate that Johnson & Johnson and DePuy are now prepared to settle another 1,000 ASR cases that were excluded from the first deal.

Recalled DePuy ASR Hips May Fail For Years

The cases stem from a DePuy ASR hip recall issued August 2010, which impacted nearly 90,000 implants sold worldwide.

DePuy recalled the ASR implants after early data suggested that about one out of every eight of the metal-on-metal hip replacements may fail within the first five years. However, subsequent data has suggested that the DePuy hip failure rate may ultimately be substantially, and it is expected that individuals with one of the recalled implants will continue to face a risk of problems for the next several years.

More than 12,000 DePuy ASR hip cases were filed before the original settlement, alleging that the manufacturers sold a defective and unreasonably dangerous implant. The plaintiffs indicated that the metal-on-metal design causes the release of metallic debris into the body as the metal parts rub against each other during normal wear and tear, increasing the risk of catastrophic failure of their implant.

While the DePuy ASR settlement program is expected to resolve the vast majority of claims, it will not end the entire litigation.

The handful of individuals who declined the offer due to more serious injuries and those who have not had to have their DePuy ASR hip replaced are expected to continue litigating their claims for years.