For $1.1 billion, Philips Respironics will settle personal injury and medical monitoring lawsuits related to the safety of its continuous positive airway pressure machines and respirators.
The settlement does not admit any fault, liability or that Respironics' devices caused any injuries. About 58,000 people filed claims or entered the census registry after the medical device company recalled more than 3 million CPAP, bi-level positive airway pressure and ventilator machines.
Polyester-based polyurethane sound abatement foam had the risk of breaking down, which posed health risks to patients if they consumed the particles.
Philips announced the settlement news April 29 in its Q1 2024 financial report.
"Patient safety and quality is our highest priority, and we have taken important steps in further resolving the consequences of the Respironics recall," Royal Philips CEO Roy Jakobs said in a statement. "The remediation of the sleep therapy devices for patients is almost complete, and the test results to date show the use of these devices is not expected to result in appreciable harm to health. We do regret the concern that patients may have experienced."
In early April, Philips Respironics entered a consent decree, agreeing to halt U.S. sales of new respiratory devices until remediation standards are met.
"The approved consent decree and economic loss settlement, and now the resolution of the personal injury and medical monitoring litigation in the US, are significant milestones and provide further clarity on the way forward for Philips," Mr. Jakobs said.