Bayer to Pay $1.6 Billion to End U.S. Suits Over Contraceptive
- Agreement would resolve 90% of the 39,000 U.S. injury claims
- Women said implant caused organ damage, pelvic pain, bleeding
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Bayer AG agreed to pay $1.6 billion to resolve most of the U.S. litigation over its now-withdrawn Essure contraceptive device, which some women said caused excessive bleeding and pelvic pain or failed to prevent pregnancies.
The deal will resolve about 90% of the 39,000 lawsuits consolidated in courts in California and Pennsylvania, Bayer said Thursday in a statement. The proposed payout is considerably more than the $1.1 billion Bayer paid in 2013 to acquire Conceptus Inc., the company that developed the device. Bayer stopped selling Essure in 2018.