J&J Sued by Consumers Over Children’s Cold Medicines‎

Johnson & Johnson, the world’s largest health-products company, was sued by U.S. consumers accusing it of fraud and racketeering, and demanding cash refunds for recalled children’s cold and allergy medicines.

In five complaints seeking class-action, or group, status filed yesterday in federal court in Chicago, the consumers spurned an offer by J&J’s McNeil Consumer Healthcare and McNeil- PPC Inc. units for refund coupons and demanded cash.

The coupons are “worthless” because McNeil has stopped making the medicines and “wrongly assumes that all consumers will want to purchase the company’s children’s products at some uncertain future date,” according to the complaints.

The companies on April 30 recalled more than 40 types of pediatric pain and allergy drugs saying their quality and potency didn’t meet internal requirements. Among the products it named were children’s formulations of liquid Tylenol, Motrin and Benadryl. J&J’s over-the-counter medicines and nutritionals unit had revenue of $1.21 billion in the first quarter.

Bonnie Jacobs, a spokeswoman for New Brunswick, New Jersey based J&J, said consumers can request a refund or coupon at mcneilproductrecall.com. She declined to comment further, saying that as a policy the company doesn’t discuss litigation.