Santa Clara, CAA $100 million dollar settlement awarded to a woman who sued Boston Scientific over injuries related to its pelvic mesh devices, has been reduced to $10 million by a judge in Delaware. Importantly, however, the judge did uphold the verdict, which found that Boston Scientific’s Pinnacle device and Advantage Fit sling caused Deborah Barba pain such that she required subsequent surgeries to remove the devices.
On May 28, Barba was awarded $25 million in compensatory and $75 million in punitive damages to Deborah Barba, plus $45,260 in medical expenses. Barba’s attorney said he wasn’t surprised or shocked about the award reduction, but is grateful the judge kept the jury’s intent on the punitive award.
In reducing the award, Johnston looked to other pelvic mesh verdicts, which ranged from $250,000 to $6.7 million in compensatory damages and, in cases in which they were awarded, $1.75 million to $7.76 million in punitive damages.
She reduced Barba’s compensatory damages to $2.5 million and punitive damages to $7.5 million, the same 3:1 ratio that the jury found.
“Punitive damages are warranted in this case in order to punish Boston Scientific and deter it from permitting other products to enter the market without first taking steps to ensure the product’s safety and efficacy,” Judge Johnston wrote.
The Barba award is the fourth such award against Boston Scientific and its pelvic mesh devices. Last year, a Texas state court jury awarded $73.4 million, and federal juries in Florida and West Virginia awarded $26.7 million and $18.5 million, respectively.
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