Zirconia Femoral Heads for Hip Implants Recalled

In August a group of class action claimants and Sulzer Orthopedics took a proposed settlement to a federal court judge designed to compensate people with the defective implants for their injuries. In re Inter-Op Hip Prosthesis Liab. Litig., MDL No. 1401 (N.D. Ohio Aug. 29, 2001) (unpublished). Under the proposed settlement Sulzer and other affiliated companies will contribute an estimated $700 million to $780 million in cash and equity. About $486.5 million will be placed in a patient benefit fund to directly compensate implantees and their family members. People who will require more than one revision surgery will receive $63,500 in cash and $34,000 in stock. Those requiring one revision surgery will be entitled to $37,500 in cash and $20,000 in stock. And people who do not need a revision surgery will get $750 in cash and $2,000 in stock. In addition, the companies will pay $4 million for a research fund and $20 million for medical monitoring.

While the class action settlement has been supported by many of those that are potentially affected, some attorneys that represent people injured by the implants have said that the settlement is wholly inadequate because it will not adequately reimburse people for rehabilitation costs and lost earnings from missing work. The settlement was proposed to keep the Sulzer entities from going bankrupt, but a Houston-based attorney, George Fleming, reports that Sulzer Orthopedics alone could fund the entirety of the settlement without experiencing any financial trouble.

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