This class action concerns Meijer pain relief patches that claim to deliver 4% lidocaine over a period of time. The complaint brings suit against their maker, Meijer, Inc., alleging that the promises made for the product are misleading in multiple ways, because of its poor adherence, “maximum strength” claims, and desensitizing claims.
Two classes have been defined for this action:
- The Wisconsin Class is all persons in Wisconsin who bought the product during the applicable statutes of limitations.
- The Consumer Fraud Multi-State Class is all persons in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky who bought the product during the applicable statutes of limitations.
Page 1 of the complaint contains a photo of the product box, showing an image of a male back with one of the patches applied at the lower back. The box is printed with the words “Stays in place,” “Maximum Strength,” and “Temporarily relieve[s] minor pain & desensitize[s] aggravated nerves.”
Page two shows part of the back of the package, with the Directions panel, advising consumers to “Use one patch for up to 12 hours.”
Adherence
When the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reviewed over-the-counter skin patches in 2003, the complaint alleges, it “concluded that these transdermal drug delivery systems … systematically fail to adhere to the body.” The complaint also refers to a 2021 study of lidocaine patches in the Journal of Pain Research that, it says, similarly “found that about half the time they failed to completely adhere for the promised duration of eight hours.”
Consumers seeing the directions on the box, the complaint claims, will believe that the patches will stick to the skin for twelve hours. But the complaint alleges that the patches will not adhere for that long.
Maximum strength
The product’s “maximum strength” claim is misleading for a number of reasons, the complaint alleges, including because “newly developed adhesive technology delivers the bioequivalence of 5% lidocaine in patch form and maintains adhesion for at least eight hours under normal conditions.”
However, it says that the patches at issue peel off within three to four hours, so that they cannot deliver a “maximum strength” dosage of lidocaine.
Desensitizing claims
The product’s promise to “desensitize aggravated nerves” is also misleading, the complaint alleges, because it does not do this completely.
Also, the complaint alleges that the FDA found that statements about desensitizing nerves were misleading because, it says, “this implies to consumers it will completely block and numb nerves and pain receptors eliminate responses to painful stimuli, and treat neuropathic and musculoskeletal pain…” The complaint claims that consumers will associate these kinds of promises with medical treatments that require a prescription and FDA approval.
Article Type: LawsuitTopic: Consumer
Most Recent Case Event
Meijer Lidocaine Pain Relief Patches Misrepresentations Complaint
December 4, 2022
This class action concerns Meijer pain relief patches that claim to deliver 4% lidocaine over a period of time. The complaint brings suit against their maker, Meijer, Inc., alleging that the promises made for the product are misleading in multiple ways, because of its poor adherence, “maximum strength” claims, and desensitizing claims.
Meijer Lidocaine Pain Relief Patches Misrepresentations ComplaintCase Event History
Meijer Lidocaine Pain Relief Patches Misrepresentations Complaint
December 4, 2022
This class action concerns Meijer pain relief patches that claim to deliver 4% lidocaine over a period of time. The complaint brings suit against their maker, Meijer, Inc., alleging that the promises made for the product are misleading in multiple ways, because of its poor adherence, “maximum strength” claims, and desensitizing claims.
Meijer Lidocaine Pain Relief Patches Misrepresentations Complaint