subject: J&js New Statement Further Puts Its Recall Motives In Question [print this page] Johnson and Johnsons (J&Js) recall motives is made more suspicious by its new statement that the DePuy hip replacement recall is not expected to have a material adverse effect on the companys financial position. The recall had been estimated to cost J&J about $1 billion, according to a New York Times analysis, with complaints continuing to rise for this year alone. The British Joint Registry estimated that nearly one third of DePuy hip replacement fail after six years, thus more complaints are expected to be filed.
When J&J hired BroadSpire to handle the DePuy ASR hip replacement recalls, its motives have been questioned with critics saying that by settling claims with patients before they fully understand their legal rights or the likely cost of their hip-related medical costs in the future, the pharmaceutical company is actually cutting down its expenses. DePuy countered the allegation saying that all they wanted was to provide efficient assistance to patients and healthcare providers. J&Js new statement, however, hinted of a different motive, one that is beneficial to the company itself.
With DePuy accounting for 75 percent of the 5,000 complaints received by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on hip replacement since January of this year, it is hard to believe that J&Js financial position will not be adversely affected. A study by the National Joint Registry (NJR) of England and Wales which suggested that the five-year failure rate of this product was approximately 13 percent does not bode well for some 93,000 patients worldwide implanted with the DePuy ASR hip replacement systems. One in every eight patients who have had the DePuy hip replacement will have their hip implant failing in five years.
Considering this, the critics are then not far off with their allegations as to J&Js motive in letting BroadSpire handle the recall. It may seem the right move but in actuality it is taking advantage of victims by putting them under the care of doctors on J&Js payroll, not the patients own doctor, and requiring those patients to hand over medical records the company would not normally get a look at unless the patient was represented by an attorney. According to David Prince, professor of law at William Mitchell College of Law, "You can see how the company wants to make sure they only pay what they consider in their own mind legitimate claims."
The issues on DePuy hip replacement recall are not expected to die down soon with 700 complaints filed for the last two months alone. According to medical studies suggesting that more than 1 in 8 patients would have their implant failing within five years, a growing number of victims also have their implants lasting only a fraction of that time with some experiencing pain within less than a year.
