ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — New York Attorney General Letitia James helped a coalition of attorneys general get $700 million from Johnson & Johnson for using talcum powder as an ingredient. The state will receive $44 million of that settlement, which stipulated that the pharmaceutical company cannot manufacture or sell talcum powder products anymore.
The Mesothelioma Center said that Johnson & Johnson has used talcum powder, also known as talc, in its iconic baby powder formula since 1894. And the FDA said that talc is a natural mineral with many cosmetic and personal care uses like absorbing moisture.
The FDA also said that, beginning in the 1960s, a body of scientific evidence associated talc with an increased risk of ovarian cancer, though no clear link was ever conclusively demonstrated. They also noted that questions about whether asbestos contaminates talc date back to the 1970s. But in 2023, FDA tests of 50 cosmetic products containing talcum powder—none identified as Johnson & Johnson products—turned up zero positives for asbestos.
But the Office of the Attorney General (AGO) characterized talc as dangerous, and Johnson & Johnson baby powder as talc-laced. The consent order carefully stated that the company opted to settle rather than let the matter go to court to save money. And yet, private class action lawsuits against them—over 60,000 by one count—continue to highlight this issue.
In a press release announcing the settlement, the AGO said, “Talcum powder can cause serious health concerns, including ovarian cancer and lung problems.” Even so, the proceedings did not ultimately get closer to figuring out whether talc causes cancer. Instead, the original complaint calls out deceptive acts or practices and false advertising of products with talc.
The AGO pointed to marketing phrases like “clinically proven gentle and mild” and the presence of substances called tremolite and actinolite—varieties of asbestos fibers—in Johnson & Johnson’s talc. “As early as 1969,” the complaint read, “J&J expressed internal concern in a memo that the tremolite fibers in its talc posed a safety risk, and that J&J would not be able to assure that its powders were safe to use if tremolite in more than ‘unavoidable trace amounts’ were present.”
In the 1990s, the AGO said, Johnson & Johnson specifically targeted beauty salons and churches in communities of color with marketing about its talcum powder products, including Shower to Shower. In the U.S., Johnson & Johnson stopped distributing and selling talc products in 2020, after the coalition of state attorneys general opened their investigation, per James’s office.
“Targeting communities with cosmetic products that contain dangerous substances is not just illegal, it is very cruel,” said James in a statement. “No amount of money can undo the pain caused by Johnson & Johnson’s talc-laced products, but today families can rest assured that the company is being held accountable for the harm it caused, and its dangerous products will no longer be on shelves in New York.
The coalition included Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawai, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. Each party paid their own legal fees. The full $700 million settlement—and the $44 million total for New York—will be paid in four installments, according to the court order, with the final one on July 30, 2027.
Take a look at the judgment below: