Johnson and Johnson is currently the target of more than 10,000 lawsuits in regards to the company’s DePuy ASR metal on metal hip implant. Now, a report shows that the government actually initiated an investigation into the company last year in order to determine whether or not officials made false claims to federal healthcare programs.
The Justice Department and the United States attorney in Massachusetts requested documentation back in August in an attempt to ascertain whether such claims were made about the marketing or usage of the devices. The DePuy ASR XL was recalled in August 2010, and the many lawsuits filed in conjunction with the device alleged that it was poorly designed and that the company did not detail potential issues with the device, nor the severity of those problems.
But this isn’t the only device currently the subject of an investigation by the government. The attorney general of California is at the head of a 42-state inquiry into potentially faulty marketing claims made in regards to certain surgical mesh products from J & J. These products are used to correct certain urogynecological problems and hernias, and one particular item, the Gynocare Prolift Surgical Mesh Implant, has been targeted in 1,800 or so lawsuits which allege deficiencies in marketing. One case is currently ongoing at a state court in Atlantic City, New Jersey. J & J contends that they pulled the Prolift and other items from the market because they weren’t selling well enough.