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JUSTICE DEPARTMENT FILES SUIT TO RECOVER FEDERAL

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Department of Justice today filed suit against six major corporations to recover government expenditures in treating injuries incurred by silicon breast implant claimants. The suit was filed against Baxter International, Inc., Baxter Healthcare Corp., Bristol-Meyers-Squibb Co., 3M Co., Union Carbide Chemical and Plastics Co. and Union Carbide Corp. in the pending litigation brought by women who allege they were injured by silicon gel breast implants.

The government's claim in the case is based on the Medicare Secondary Payer laws, which ensure that Medicare is reimbursed when it pays for treatment that should have been paid for by a third party, and the Medical Care Recovery Act, which permits the government to recover the cost of providing medical care to persons injured as a result of the wrongful acts of a third party.

The lawsuit was filed today in U.S. District Court in Birmingham, Alabama after the breakdown of several years of negotiations with the implant manufacturers over the government's claims.

Although the complaint does not seek a specified amount of damages, the government believes it is owed millions of dollars. The complaint also seeks to enjoin disbursement of additional settlement funds related to treatments funded by the government until the government's rights are resolved.

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