Johnson & Johnson has offered to pay $5.5 billion to settle tens of thousands of lawsuits in the United States. The cases claim that its old talc-based baby powder caused ovarian cancer.
The deal covers about 69,000 to 76,000 claims. These include cases in federal court in New Jersey and related state court cases. It represents nearly all the remaining talc lawsuits against the company. For the agreement to become final, at least 95 percent of the claimants must accept it.
Johnson & Johnson still says its products did not cause cancer. The company stopped selling talc baby powder in the US and Canada in 2020. It stopped selling it worldwide in 2023 and switched to a cornstarch version.
The company plans to pay up to $3 billion in 2027. More payments would come later, starting no earlier than 2028. Lawyers for some claimants say the total amount could rise higher than $5.5 billion depending on how many people join.
This settlement comes after more than 15 years of court fights. It follows earlier attempts by the company to resolve the cases through bankruptcy that did not succeed.
