U.S. leading medical goods manufacturer Johnson &Johnson (J&J) has agreed to pay 9.9 million U.S. dollars to settle litigation with Washington State, the state's Attorney General Bob Ferguson said Monday.
Ferguson said J&J's decision would avoid a trial, which was originally scheduled for Monday, for its failure to disclose serious risks in the instructions and marketing materials for surgical mesh devices, which were implanted in the bodies of about 14,000 Washington women.
The mesh devices are normally used for urinary problems and pelvic organ prolapse to keep organs from shifting from their normal position.
Ferguson said the women who used the mesh devices have suffered non-life-threatening but chronic and sexual pain as well as urinary issues.
J&J had known some of the most serious risks associated with the use of its mesh devices and the impact of these reactions that would exponentially increase due to the difficulty of removing them once implanted, Ferguson said.
"Johnson &Johnson's knowing deception caused Washington women to suffer in deeply personal ways," he noted.
"I'm proud of my team for holding a powerful interest accountable for its egregious conduct -- and look forward to providing millions of dollars in relief to assist those who were harmed," he added.
Ferguson filed a lawsuit against the American multinational medical devices and pharmaceutical goods manufacturer in 2016. He is also the first state attorney general to sue Johnson &Johnson over surgical mesh devices.
