The much anticipated Johnson &
Johnson Depuy ASR Hip settlement agreement has been announced. The agreement
was announced during an open court hearing in Judge Katz’s courtroom. Of
course, the agreement has to be approved by Judge Katz. Another caveat for the
agreement to go through is that 94% of all claimants must opt-in and agree to
the settlement.
Details of the agreement are now readily
available for the general public. In what was rumored to be a $4 Billion
settlement, in actuality is more in line with a $2.5 Billion settlement. The
settlement only covers those claimants who have had a revision surgery on their
DePuy ASR metal-on-metal hip prior to August 31, 2013. This number is estimated
to be close to 8,000 claimants.
Those claimants who have not yet had a
revision surgery are technically shut out of receiving any compensation in this
agreement. It is anticipated that another round of settlements will occur as
the device fails in these claimants and they need revision surgery.
The base payment for a revision claimant
will be about $250,000. That payment will fluctuate based on a number of
factors including age, weight, length of time the implant was in, and if the
claimant smoked. There will also be a pool of $475 Million for the most
severely injured.
