Lawsuits Allege Similac, Enfamil Infant Formula Can Cause Necrotizing Enterocolitis in Premature Babies

If your premature baby developed necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) after being fed cow’s milk-based Similac or Enfamil products, you may be able to take legal action.

Lawsuits are now being filed that claim two makers of baby formula products, Mead Johnson and Abbott Laboratories, knew and failed to warn hospitals, doctors and caregivers that their cow’s milk-based infant formulas can significantly increase the risk that premature babies will develop potentially fatal NEC.

In fact, it’s been alleged that the companies ignored well-established scientific evidence that cow’s milk-based formulas are linked to NEC and went so far as to market their Similac and Enfamil baby formula products as superior to safer alternatives such as breast milk.

Baby Formula and NEC: What’s the Link?

While the cause of necrotizing enterocolitis is not completely understood, medical experts agree that feeding infant formula to premature babies increases their risk of developing the disease while human breast milk decreases this risk.

In normally functioning intestines, cells lining the “lumen” of the organ absorb nutrients and release them to the rest of the body through the bloodstream and lymphatic system.

The tight juncture between these cells keeps bacteria and toxins from escaping into the other parts of the body while allowing the nutrients to flow through. It’s believed that ingesting cow’s milk products can cause a breakdown of these junctures that allows bacteria to invade the intestinal wall, causing an inflammatory response that can eventually lead to a rupture of the intestine, widespread infection (sepsis) and death.

Research has shown that significantly higher rates of necrotizing enterocolitis have been found in premature babies with very low birth weights who were fed cow’s milk-based formula or fortifier products over those who were fed exclusively with human breast milk.

Which Infant Formula Products Are Involved in the Lawsuits?

What’s Involved in Filing a Lawsuit Over Infant Formula?

Before a lawsuit can be filed, your attorney will need to collect information to support your claim that the Similac or Enfamil baby formula or fortifier product was responsible for your baby’s necrotizing enterocolitis. You may be asked to provide medical records, receipts or other documents and answer questions about the effect your child’s injury or death has had on your life.

Once your attorney has gathered enough information, he or she will draft a “complaint,” or a legal document filed with the court that will detail the injuries you’ve suffered, the damages (i.e., losses) you’re seeking and why the company or companies you’re suing should be held accountable for the injury or death.

Once the lawsuit is filed, your attorney will engage with the attorneys representing the defendants (i.e., the companies being sued) and the court in an attempt to resolve the matter. This process may include exchanging documents; taking depositions; filing motions, briefs and other documents with the court; consulting with experts; issuing subpoenas; and attending hearings. If the attorneys cannot agree on a settlement and the judge does not dismiss the case, your lawsuit will proceed to a jury trial.

Is This a Class Action Lawsuit?

No. Attorneys working with ClassAction.org are handling these lawsuits on an individual basis instead of as a class action. That means you will need to file your own individual lawsuit and be represented by your own attorney. To find out why most cases involving serious injury or death are handled individually instead of as class actions, visit this page.

What You Can Do

Once you reach out, an attorney may contact you directly to answer your questions and help determine whether you can file a lawsuit.

Remember, it’s free to speak with an attorney working with ClassAction.org, and you’re not obligated to take legal action just because you talked to someone about your rights.

Necrotizing Enterocolitis Lawsuit Update 2024: Abbott Labs to Pay $495M NEC Lawsuit Damages

A bellwether trial jury on July 26, 2024, awarded $495 million in compensatory and punitive damages over allegations that Abbott Labs’ Similac Special Care 24 formula could cause a premature baby to develop necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC).

The Missouri jury deliberated for three weeks over evidence centered on claims that the cow’s milk-based Similac Special Care 24, which is used in neonatal intensive care units, caused the plaintiff’s child to develop NEC. The mother’s lawyers said the child, who was born at 26 weeks’ gestation in August 2021, developed NEC within 72 hours of starting to take Similac Special Care 24.

The jury verdict calls for Abbott Labs to pay $95 million in compensatory damages and $400 million in punitive damages.

The lawyers told Law360 that the child had 75 percent of her intestine removed, must use a wheelchair, cannot eat regularly, has neurological damage, and requires permanent around-the-clock care for life.

The child should not have been given Similac Special Care 24 as long as she remained under 1,500 grams in light of studies that show a sharp uptick in the risk of NEC under that weight, the jury heard.

To return a verdict in a civil suit in Missouri, three-fourths of the jurors must agree. The Abbott Labs Similac NEC verdict was supported by nine of the 12 jurors, Reuters reported.

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