[News] RECALL THREAD-- IMPORTANT PHILIPS DREAMSTATION & SYSTEM ONE USERS

[WakeUpTime]

Philips seeks to escape economic loss claims over recalled sleep apnea machines
December 7, 2022  |  Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation...022-12-07/

In a motion filed Tuesday in federal court in Pittsburgh, Philips said that the plaintiffs — 112 individuals and 10 commercial entities seeking to represent classes of potentially millions of buyers nationwide — had no standing to sue because they did not claim that their devices had actually harmed them, and the company had offered to repair or replace the recalled devices for free.

The plaintiffs seeking economic damages said that they would not have paid for the devices if they knew of the danger, and that despite Philips' offer to repair or replace them, the recall had rendered them worthless.

Sleep Relief: Some Apnea Patients Face Challenges Seeking Replacement Device Under Recall
December 9, 2022  |  NBC Chicago
https://www.nbcchicago.com/consumer/slee...l/3015481/

The announcement left patients like Wright facing a false choice: Use a risky appliance or risk not waking up at all given their apnea disorder.  Wright waited a year and then received more bad news.  "Now [Philips Respironics] is saying, 'Sorry, it's too old. … You are only eligible for $50.'"

After NBC 5 Responds contacted Philips about Wright’s situation, she was able to get a new prescription and her replacement claim was expedited.  Wright now has a new CPAP device and she hopes what happened to her will be part of a new pattern for the company.  “They should take care of everybody's machines,” Wright said.

Lawsuit Alleges, Philips DreamStation CPAP Caused Adenocarcinoma of the Lung 
December 5, 2022
https://www.aboutlawsuits.com/philips-dr...a-lawsuit/

A product liability lawsuit alleges toxic sound abatement foam in a Philips DreamStation CPAP caused a Florida man to develop adenocarcinoma of the lungs, after particles and gasses were released directly into the sleep apnea machine’s air pathways.

[A KLERK]

Again, a large Dutch Newspaper published on the subject. Now in an interview with Chris Seeger, who states: "Evidence against Philips is overwhelming". 

American lawyer Chris Seeger (62) took on car manufacturer Volkswagen in the diesel scandal, he sued pharmaceutical company Merck over heart attacks after swallowing painkillers and assisted American-football players against their sports association NFL over brain damage. He dragged in billions in settlements for his clients, and after the last case, rules changed to make American football safer.
 
Now it's Philips' turn. Seeger calls the lawsuit against the Dutch electronics company unique for several reasons: the size of the case, the company's stance, and the health care regulator that seems to be on the side of patients this time.

I translated the whole article, see attached.

[btreger]

Again, a large Dutch Newspaper published on the subject. Now in an interview with Chris Seeger, who states: "Evidence against Philips is overwhelming". 

Thank you for posting this timely article. After reading the Reuters article, "Philips seeks to escape economic loss claims over recalled sleep apnea machines". Not until you posted Mr. Seeger's article there seemed that there was no one standing up to challenge Philips's legal filing.

[WakeUpTime]

[Chris Seeger, Lawyer for Philips Plantiffs]

How many victims are there?
"Around 15 million people worldwide have been affected, about six million of them in the US. Every one of them was cheated from the moment of purchase. The device was defective from day one. They didn't first enjoy it for five years and then it broke down, no. This is an obvious case. Philips used the wrong foam, which was sensitive to moisture and high temperatures. They should have used polyether foam."

You allege fraud. Why?
"Fraudulent is Philips' claim that the device is safe. But fraudulent also exists because the company withheld information from users about the unsafe nature of the foam. It is not difficult to convince a jury that consumers would have wanted to know this."

"People are still using these defective devices today, while at the same time we're dealing with a Class 1 recall. That is, there is immediate harm to patients using it. There is still no solution for these users. Patients and doctors face a diabolical dilemma. The choice they have when they go to their doctor is "do you want to die today or tomorrow? And most people will choose not to die today. People know they are putting a poison in their body. But if they sleep at night without a device, they may not wake up the next morning. People with severe apnea are sometimes a breath or a heartbeat away from death. They live with that terrible choice of continuing to use a device which may one day lead to cancer or serious breathing problems."

Philips said this summer that there is no link between apnea devices and cancer risk in patients. How do you view that?
For example, Philips used to agree with the FDA on the classification of the recall, the most severe category. Now their lawyers are going through the data with mathematicians and biostatisticians and will cast doubt. But why should anyone trust Philips when you look at the history of these products? The first complaints were in 2011. By 2015, the company knew that black particles from the devices could get into the airways."

What does the regulator do differently here?
"The FDA is on top of things. It seems like it's not giving Philips breathing room, like it was lied to and won't let that happen again. That's my reading if you look at the regulator's letters to Philips. I've never seen this happen. Never."

Philips says it has only known about the problems since the first quarter of 2021. How do you feel about that?
"That's just implausible. We don't believe that and neither does the FDA."  "Based on the facts. The simple fact that based on those emails in 2015 and 2016, Philips certainly knew and should have known that it was using the wrong foam. 

Some notable excerpts.

[A KLERK]

I received the following email as staff member of the heavily involved Dutch ApneuVereniging (the "Dutch ApneaBoard"):

From: Philips, Pieter de Meer

Subject: Response to NRC article: 'Evidence against Philips is overwhelming, says U.S. personal injury lawyer'
 
Dear all,
Last night an article appeared in the NRC entitled: "The evidence against Philips is overwhelming, says U.S. personal injury lawyer". Herewith we would like to share with you our reaction to the post. We also inform other media with this reaction.

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Philips' response to NRC article 'Evidence against Philips is overwhelming, says U.S. personal injury lawyer' 

First of all, let's say that we greatly regret going up against users of our devices in these lawsuits. We absolutely do not look forward to that. Nevertheless, we will have to defend ourselves in which we especially want to get unjustified accusations off the table. We understand, of course, that American users' personal injury lawyers seek the greatest possible return for their clients. Unfortunately, that does not always involve only the facts.

In today's article in NRC, we see the same thing happening. Here an American personal injury lawyer is given space to put down a one-sided version of the case. Philips and Philips Respironics are cooperating to bring out the actual facts and proper context so judges can make a judgment on this.

Q: Philips is accused of fraud and negligence, among other things, in the US. What is Philips' response to this?
A: Philips disagrees with these accusations and will defend itself against them in the various lawsuits.

Q: Philips is said to have initially agreed with the classification of the safety notification (Class 1) and then suddenly not in court. Is that correct?
A: We do not recognize this. It is up to the FDA and other competent authorities to give a safety notification a certain classification and we follow that judgment.

Q: Philips would not be cooperative in this case, would not show guilt toward the victims. How does Philips see that?
A: We do not recognize ourselves in that picture. Precisely because of the uncertainty among the affected patients, we have worked hard in recent months on the replacement and repair program, as well as the test program to find out to what extent the PE-PUR foam can actually lead to health damage. In addition, Philips Respironics is cooperating fully with the FDA and Department of Justice (DoJ) investigations.

Q: According to the lawyer, the FDA is on the side of the consumer and not Philips in this case. Your response to this? 
A: Obviously, the FDA is standing up for the interests of consumers and patients. That has nothing to do with taking sides, but our collective duty to resolve any problems as adequately as possible. We have no different view on this than the FDA.

Q: What does the Department of Justice (DoJ) investigation in America involve?
A: In April 2022, Respironics received some requests for information from the DoJ as part of an investigation. Respironics is cooperating fully. At this time, we are not aware of any potential suspicions.

Q: How many lawsuits are now in play in the U.S.?
A: As of the end of November 2022, the following product liability cases related to safety reporting are in play in the US: 

• A class action is pending on behalf of all device users (and their insurers) claiming economic damages because it alleges that the device did not have the value they expected when they purchased it.
  
• In addition, a class action has been filed on behalf of device users claiming reimbursement of costs associated with medical research.
  
• Finally, there are approximately 250 individual cases from individuals claiming to have suffered health damage.
  

*** Translated with http://www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version) ***

FWIW....  

[btreger]

I received the following email as staff member of the heavily involved Dutch ApneuVereniging (the "Dutch ApneaBoard"):

Thank you again.

Pieter de Meer is a Senior Communications Manager for Philip's

 If Mr. Seeger responds to this, please keep us informed.

[lmkt1]

Nope!

My husband registered in June 2021. We were told that our DM will be "distributing" the replacement machines but that it wouldn't be until DEC 2022. I followed up with them yesterday and they are not getting as many as they hoped but they will let us know when they receive our replacement. 

I'm not holding out a lot faith in this.

[oldgreenhead]

All,  I am a regular reader and occasional poster to this website.  I have a Philips Dreamstation 1 recalled device.  I also am blessed with a Resmed Aircurve 10, purchased after the recall was announced.  Both are ASV machines.

I have heard NOTHING from Philips in the 18 months since I registered.  Yesterday, I tried to check the "status" of my recall on the registration website.  I received a red error message telling me that I was not on the registration database.  This morning, I reached a real person at the registration telephone number.   She asked for my serial number and other info, then informed me that I was indeed registered.  

She could not tell me the status of my recalled device because "the registration website was down";  "the red error message that I received was the computers way of telling me the website was not working".  

At least Philips is consistent in their behavior.  1) they care nothing about the status or plight of their customers; 2) their only goal in this now 18 month old process is to minimize their expenses.

Oh well.

[btreger]

LAWSUITS NEWS & LEGAL INFORMATION


CPAP RECALL GONE WRONG NEARING SETTLEMENT WITH PHILIPS AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT

December 14, 2022, 8:45AM. By Jane Mundy

A POTENTIAL SETTLEMENT OVER PHILIPS RESPIRONICS CPAP RECALL AND THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED.

Santa Clara, CA. More than a year after Philips Respironics announced its CPAP recall, which led to the U.S. Justice Department investigating possible criminal violations, The New York Times reported that Philips and government attorneys are negotiating a settlement, which would include Philips to implement a plan that would prevent another product failure and recall gone wrong.

CPAP Recall Gone Wrong Nearing Settlement with Philips and Justice Department (lawyersandsettlements.com)

[longtermsufferer]

I still haven't had mine recalled in the UK.