Johnson & Johnson has received subpoenas from the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission related to the safety of its baby powder products, the company said Wednesday. The disclosure was made in an annual federal report filed with the SEC. The company said it intends to comply with the subpoenas, as well as a request from Sen. Patty Murray Patricia (Patty) Lynn MurrayRivers, hydropower and climate resilience Senators shed masks after CDC lifts mandate Biden's pre-K plan is a bipartisan opportunity to serve the nation's children MORE (D-Wash.) to produce documents regarding claims of asbestos in talcum powder products, including baby powder. ADVERTISEMENT J&J is facing a wave of lawsuits brought by thousands of plaintiffs who allege that talc in the company's baby powder products contained asbestos and caused mesothelioma, ovarian cancer and other diseases. The company said it intends to continue to defend itself against the litigation. Late last year, the company launched a national ad campaign defending itself following an investigation from Reuters that said the company knew for decades its talc baby powder contained traces of asbestos. The Reuters report caused a significant drop in the company's stock, but it has since rebounded. J&J has asserted that Reuters ignored a host of scientific evidence showing talc does not cause cancer and noted that there has been no asbestos found in baby powder products that have been on the market for the past 15 years.<doc-sep>The Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating Johnson & Johnson over concerns the company's baby powder may have contained asbestos. The agencies subpoenaed the health care product maker in the wake of several jury awards to plaintiffs who claimed the company's talc products were tainted with asbestos and caused their cancers. The agencies seek documents about those matters and other suits Johnson & Johnson faces filed by shareholders and pension holders over the situation. Johnson & Johnson shares fell 1.4 percent in early trading Thursday to $134.43. About 13,000 plaintiffs seek claims in pending lawsuits involving talc-based body powders. "The Company is cooperating with these government inquiries and will be producing documents in response," Johnson & Johnson said in an SEC filing Wednesday. Jury award:Nearly $4.7 billion awarded in Johnson & Johnson baby powder lawsuit Johnson & Johnson:Stock price tumbles after report of asbestos in its talcum baby powder Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the Senate Health Committee sought information from Johnson & Johnson about the company's knowledge of potential asbestos in its talcum-based products. Last year, courts in New Jersey and California awarded damages to plaintiffs who claimed Johnson & Johnson talc products tainted with asbestos caused their mesothelioma. In July 2018, a St. Louis jury awarded $4.7 billion to 22 women who said asbestos in the company's talc powder contributed to their ovarian cancer. In the SEC filing, Johnson & Johnson said, "The Company believes that it has strong grounds on appeal to overturn these verdicts." Johnson & Johnson said in a statement to USA TODAY that the agencies' and Sen. Murray's inquiries "are related to news reports that included inaccurate statements and also withheld crucial information that had already been made public in the litigation and in prior media reports about the ongoing talc litigation that adversely impacted our share price in late December 2018." The statement continued: "Decades of independent tests by regulators and the world’s leading labs prove Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder is safe and asbestos-free, and does not cause cancer. We intend to cooperate fully with these inquiries and will continue to defend the Company in the talc-related litigation." The Justice Department and the SEC declined to comment. Details about the DOJ and SEC inquiries come two months after reports in The New York Times and Reuters revealed documents suggesting the company knew about the risk of asbestos in its powders for decades and sought to keep the issue quiet. Johnson & Johnson stock plummeted after those reports, falling 17 percent, resulting in a decline in the company's market value of about $40 billion. Those reports prompted Murray to seek information from Johnson & Johnson, she said. "I am troubled by recent reports of an alleged decades-long effort by Johnson & Johnson to potentially mislead regulators and consumers about the safety of one of its products, which may have resulted in long-term harm for men, women and children who used Johnson & Johnson baby powder," she wrote in a letter to Johnson & Johnson Chairman and CEO Alex Gorsky late last month. Burger King:Food chain trolls KFC's Colonel Sanders with new grilled chicken sandwich – the K.F.G. February freebies:Your monthly guide to food specials, meal deals and more Follow Mike Snider on Twitter: @MikeSnider.<doc-sep>
Johnson & Johnson said Wednesday it has received subpoenas from the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission related to litigation involving alleged asbestos contamination in its signature Baby Powder product line. The company said it intends to "cooperate fully with these inquiries and will continue to defend the Company in the talc-related litigation." The disclosure in Johnson & Johnson's annual report on Wednesday is the first time that the company disclosed it had received subpoenas from federal agencies regarding its talc powder products. The Justice Department and the SEC did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A Reuters report on Dec. 14 revealed that Johnson & Johnson knew for decades that small amounts of asbestos, a known carcinogen, had been occasionally found in its talc and powder products, according to tests from the 1970s to the early 2000s — information it did not disclose to regulators or the public. The Reuters article prompted a selloff in Johnson & Johnson shares, erasing about $40 billion from the company's market value in one day, and a public relations crisis as the healthcare conglomerate faced widespread questions about the possible health effects of one of its most iconic products. Johnson & Johnson said that the federal inquiries "are related to news reports that included inaccurate statements and also withheld crucial information" that had already been made public. The company added that "decades of independent tests by regulators and the world’s leading labs prove Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder is safe and asbestos-free, and does not cause cancer." Johnson & Johnson faces lawsuits involving 13,000 plaintiffs who allege use of its talc products, including Baby Powder, caused cancer.