Similac Infant Formula Lawsuit Filed by Mother Whose Child Died After NEC Infection

According to allegations raised in a wrongful death lawsuit filed earlier this month by a North Carolina woman, Abbott Laboratories has failed to adequately warn about the risk that its Similac infant formula may cause necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) for premature babies, indicating that her newborn developed the devastating intestinal infection after being fed the cow’s milk-based product while still in the hospital after birth.

The complaint (PDF) was brought by Lakisha Best in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on August 15, pursuing damages on behalf of herself and her deceased child, identified only with the initials “B.H.”

NEC is a life-threatening infection, which can occur when harmful bacteria breaches the walls of the intestines, causing portions of the tissue to become inflamed or die. The condition often results in the need for emergency surgery while the baby is still in the NICU, and many infants diagnosed with a NEC infection do not survive, like Best’s baby.

The Similac infant formula lawsuit points to a growing body of evidence that has established cow’s milk formulas dramatically raise the risk of NEC for premature infants, including both Similac and competing Enfamil brands sold by Mead Johnson.

Best’s case joins more than 1,000 other Similac lawsuits and Enfamil lawsuits that are currently being pursued by families in both federal and state courts nationwide, each raising similar allegations that the manufacturers not only withheld information about the NEC infection risks associated with their products, but provided false and misleading information about the safety of their cow’s milk-based formula for years.

The lawsuit indicates that Best gave birth to B.H. prematurely in August 2022, at a hospital in St. Louis, Missouri. Shortly after birth, the child was given Similac infant formula and developed NEC Totalis, which is a rare and aggressive form of the infection, characterized by the near-total death of intestinal tissue.

Best alleges in the wrongful death lawsuit that Abbott’s decision to base its formula for premature infants on cow’s milk led to the NEC infection.

“Baby B.H. was diagnosed with NEC Totalis as a result of being fed Abbott’s cows’ milk-based fortifier,” Best states in the complaint. “B.H.’s NEC required serious medical intervention and she ultimately died in her mother’s arms as a result of the NEC Totalis only three weeks after she was born.”

The wrongful death lawsuit also alleges that Abbott knew that its cow’s milk-based products increased the risk of NEC infections for premature infants, but did not provide any instructions or guidance on how to recognize or avoid the condition.  The complaint indicates that Abbott failed to require or even recommend that hospitals inform parents about the significant risk of NEC associated with Similac before feeding the formula or fortifier products to preterm infants.

Best presents claims of defective design, failure to warn, negligent misrepresentation and negligence. She is seeking both compensatory and punitive damages.

September 2024 Similac Infant Formula NEC Lawsuit Update

The lawsuit was filed days after a St. Louis jury awarded $495 million to an Illinois mother whose newborn daughter suffered brain damage as a result of a Similac infant formula NEC infection.

The trial was being watched closely to gauge how juries may respond to certain evidence and testimony that may be presented throughout the litigation, and help determine the average lawsuit payouts families may be awarded after learning about the false and misleading information provided by the manufacturers for years regarding the NEC risks associated with their products.

While that trial was held at the state court level, the majority of Similac and Enfamil lawsuits are being pursued by U.S. families in the federal court system, where an infant formula MDL (multidistrict litigation) was established in 2022, centralizing the NEC infection claims before U.S. District Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer in the Northern District of Illinois for coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings.

As part of the management of the litigation, Judge Pallmeyer has established a “bellwether” program, where a group of 12 NEC lawsuits brought against the two infant formula manufacturers are going through case-specific discovery. The first federal NEC infant formula lawsuit bellwether trial is expected to begin on May 5, 2025.