Info on Link Between Ozempic and Vision Loss Will Be Presented During ‘Science Day’ in June 2026

Lawyers will make educational presentations to the court, in a non-adversarial setting that will not be part of the official record or subject to cross examination.

The U.S. District Judge presiding over all Ozempic and Wegovy vision loss lawsuits filed in federal courts nationwide is calling on lawyers involved in the litigation to make a series of educational presentations this summer, to help the court better understand the science behind GLP-1 medications and their alleged links to a condition that can cause permanent vision damage and even blindness.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists are a class of medications that have become widely popular in recent years. Originally starting out as diabetes treatments, like Ozempic and Mounjaro, the drugs became blockbusters once they were connected to significant weight loss benefits. A weight loss version of Ozempic, called Wegovy, was eventually released, as well as a weight loss version of Mounjaro named Zepbound. The class also includes Victoza, Trulicity, Saxenda and Rybelsus among others.

However, in recent months, dozens of GLP-1 vision loss lawsuits have been filed, alleging that the side effects of Ozempic and Wegovy, specifically, can cause the sudden onset of irreversible vision problems, such as blurred vision and loss of vision.

The litigation began following a study in July 2024 linking GLP-1 use to non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), a condition caused by a lack of sufficient blood flow to the optic nerve. Harvard researchers found that Ozempic and Wegovy users faced a seven-fold increased risk of NAION when compared to those given drugs that do not include semaglutide, the active ingredient in both medications.

Plaintiffs in these lawsuits allege that the drug makers knew or should have known about the link between the active ingredient in Ozempic and vision loss, yet placed a desire for profits before patient safety by failing to warn users or the medical community.

Due to common questions of fact and law involved in the growing litigation, all Ozempic and Wegovy vision loss lawsuits have been consolidated in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania before U.S. District Judge Karen Marston, who has been assigned to oversee the litigation through pretrial proceedings and coordinated discovery.

To help manage the claims, Judge Marston is expected to schedule a series of bellwether test trials, which will help the parties determine how juries may respond to evidence and testimony likely to be repeated throughout the litigation. While the outcomes of these early test trials will not be binding on other claims, they frequently play an important role during settlement negotiations.

Before such trials can be held, however, Judge Marston will be asked to rule on a number of pretrial motions, which will involve complex pharmaceutical and medical issues.

To help educate the court on the underpinning of the case, Judge Marston has scheduled a “Science Day” for June 2, 2026, at which time each side will have an opportunity to make non-adversarial presentations.

In a court order (PDF) issued on March 16, Judge Marston detailed how the Science Day will proceed, indicating that each side will be given 2.5 hours to make their presentations.

“Neither the transcript nor any demonstrative aids shall be discoverable, admissible, or used in any fashion for impeachment purposes or for collateral attack. To the extent the parties share materials used by their side on Science Day, the receiving parties shall not share those beyond the litigation.

– U.S. District Judge Karen Marston

GLP-1 Stomach Paralysis Lawsuits

While the relatively new GLP-1 vision loss litigation gets underway, there are similarly thousands of claims also filed over the class of medications’ gastrointestinal side effects, which can include gastroparesis, also known as stomach paralysis, intestinal obstructions and other complications.

These GLP-1 stomach paralysis lawsuits have also been consolidated under Judge Marston, but as a separate MDL from the NAION vision loss claims.

According to Judge Marston, the court plans to select a small group of representative cases as bellwether trials for the GLP-1 stomach paralysis lawsuits as well, a process that will likely serve as a test bed for the NAION bellwether trials at a later date.

If, following these bellwether trials, the parties are unable to reach a settlement agreement or other resolution, the judge is likely to begin remanding cases back to their originating districts for individual trial dates.

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