Texas sues J&J, Kenvue over Tylenol autism claim
Ken Paxton, Attorney General of Texas
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson and consumer health spinout Kenvue, claiming they marketed Tylenol to pregnant mothers despite knowing that it "leads to significantly increased risk of autism."
The suit follows President Trump trumpeting the debunked assertion that painkiller acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, is in part responsible for rising numbers of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) cases in the US.
A long list of expert medical organisations has repeatedly slammed that assertion as irresponsible and flying against the weight of evidence for acetaminophen's safety, suggesting that J&J and Kenvue will have no shortage of expert testimony to support their defence against the claims.
It's another legal blow to the two companies, however, which are still mired in lawsuits claiming that their talc products caused cancer.
Paxton, a Republican politician who has served as the attorney general of Texas since 2015, accused the companies of "profiting off of pain and pushing pills regardless of the risks," adding that they "lied for decades, knowingly endangering millions to line their pockets."
The suit also accuses J&J of anticipating that the link between Tylenol and autism would be thrust into the spotlight by the Trump administration when it spun out Kenvue more than two years ago, claiming it was an attempt to "fraudulently" transfer the liability.
Kenvue has staunchly defended Tylenol's safety in the wake of Trump's bombshell announcement and, in a statement, said it would "vigorously defend" against Paxton's lawsuit, adding: "Acetaminophen is the safest pain reliever option for pregnant women as needed throughout their entire pregnancy."
It also slammed the "perpetuation of misinformation" on the safety of acetaminophen, which it described as the safest pain reliever option for pregnant women as needed throughout their entire pregnancy, pointing out that the FDA itself has evaluated the scientific evidence for over a decade and repeatedly concluded that the data does not support a causal association between taking acetaminophen and ASD.
"Without it, women face dangerous choices: suffer through conditions like fever that are potentially harmful to both mom and baby or use riskier alternatives. High fevers and pain are widely recognised as potential risks to a pregnancy if left untreated."
J&J's response was limited to saying that "all rights and liabilities associated with the sale of its over-the-counter products, including Tylenol (acetaminophen), are owned by Kenvue."
