Philips faces EU class action lawsuit over toxic foam in respirators

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The class action lawsuit seeks compensation for over 1.2 million users of certain medical devices from the Dutch multinational healthcare group. According to the lawyer leading the lawsuit, each plaintiff is seeking damages of at least 70,000 euros for psychological distress and other damages.

The class action lawsuit, promoted by the international lawyers’ pool Global Justice Network and the Italian consumer association ADUSBEF, was filed in Milan on June 27, said Stefano Bortone, partner at Ambrosio&Commodo. Milan is the location of Philips’ product quality headquarters. The court has not yet announced the first hearing date, said Bortone, who is president of the Global Justice Network (GJN).

The affected products are sleep therapy devices and mechanical ventilators that Philips has been selling for over a decade. These devices help patients with sleep apnea or severe breathing problems to breathe through the night. To reduce the noise of the electric motor, Philips has included soundproofing foam in the devices.

In June 2021, Philips issued a safety advisory for some respirators after identifying potential health risks associated with polyester-based polyurethane (PE-PUR), the main ingredient in soundproofing foam.

When this foam breaks down, it becomes a sticky powder. “People have been inhaling this powder, which is made up of a toxic substance that is carcinogenic and can lead to potentially fatal diseases,” Bortone said on July 4.

Philips subsequently recalled these devices worldwide and reached a $1.1 billion settlement with the company in September 2023. This settled a similar class action lawsuit in the United States in which people claimed to have been injured by using the respirators – but without admitting fault or liability for the injuries.

The aim of the new class action lawsuit is to adequately compensate European users for emotional distress and physical damage. “We want to ensure that everyone who is eligible can take part in the lawsuit,” said Bortone.

The class action lawsuit was filed under the EU’s 2020 Directive on Collective Actions, which allows European citizens to file class actions on behalf of a group of consumers.

Philips has not yet been officially served with the lawsuit, a company spokesman told Euronews, declining to comment further on the lawsuit.

The company spokesman said Philips has conducted extensive tests of the devices since June 2021, together with five independent, certified testing laboratories and external experts.

Based on these results, it was concluded that the use of sleep therapy devices would not cause significant health damage to patients. “Further tests related to the sleep therapy and ventilator devices are still ongoing,” the spokesperson added.