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NEW YORK — Johnson & Johnson has come to a tentative agreement to pay about $700 million for settling claims by over 40 U.S. states that it wrongfully marketed its talc-based baby powder, Bloomberg News reported Monday.
The settlement would avert potential lawsuits alleging Johnson & Johnson hid any links between the talc in its powder and various cancers, the report said citing people familiar with the deal.
Johnson & Johnson and representatives for state attorneys general are still working out the specific terms of the deal but have agreed on the total amount, Bloomberg News reported.
Johnson & Johnson did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Courts have rejected two efforts by the company to use the bankruptcy process to limit its exposure to talc litigation.
Last year, Johnson & Johnson had set aside about $400 million to resolve U.S. state consumer protection actions as part of its broader $8.9 billion effort to settle claims that its baby powder and other talc products cause cancer.
Several states such as New Mexico and Mississippi had begun consumer protection actions against Johnson & Johnson before its unit LTL Management's first bankruptcy filing in 2021 stopped those investigations from moving forward.
Johnson & Johnson has said its talc products are safe and do not cause cancer.
