Texas Top Legal Officer Files Lawsuit Against Acetaminophen Manufacturers Over Autism Allegations
Texas Attorney General Paxton is filing a lawsuit against the manufacturers of acetaminophen, alleging the corporations hid safety concerns that the drug posed to pediatric brain development.
This legal action arrives a month after Former President Trump publicized an unsubstantiated connection between consuming acetaminophen - referred to as paracetamol - throughout gestation and autism spectrum disorder in young ones.
The attorney general is filing suit against the pharmaceutical giant, which once produced the drug, the exclusive pain medication suggested for pregnant women, and the current manufacturer, which presently makes it.
In a official comment, he claimed they "deceived the public by gaining financially from suffering and promoting medication ignoring the risks."
Kenvue says there is lacking scientific proof tying Tylenol to autism.
"These corporations deceived for years, intentionally threatening numerous people to boost earnings," Paxton, a Republican, stated.
Kenvue commented that it was "seriously troubled by the spread of false claims on the safety of paracetamol and the potential impact that could have on the welfare of US mothers and children."
On its official site, the company also stated it had "continuously evaluated the pertinent research and there is insufficient valid information that indicates a proven link between taking acetaminophen and autism."
Groups representing doctors and medical practitioners agree.
The leading OB-GYN organization has said paracetamol - the key substance in acetaminophen - is one of the few options for expectant mothers to manage discomfort and fever, which can present significant medical dangers if ignored.
"In multiple decades of investigation on the utilization of acetaminophen in gestation, zero credible investigations has definitively established that the consumption of acetaminophen in any period of pregnancy causes neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring," the association said.
The court filing mentions latest statements from the previous government in arguing the medication is reportedly hazardous.
Recently, Trump caused concern from medical authorities when he advised pregnant women to "struggle intensely" not to consume acetaminophen when ill.
The FDA then published an announcement that doctors should think about restricting the use of acetaminophen, while also mentioning that "a direct connection" between the drug and autism in children has remains unverified.
The Health Department head Robert F Kennedy Jr, who manages the Food and Drug Administration, had vowed in spring to undertake "a massive testing and research effort" that would identify the source of autism in a limited time.
But specialists cautioned that identifying a sole reason of autism - considered by experts to be the outcome of a intricate combination of genetic and environmental factors - would be difficult.
Autism is a form of enduring cognitive variation and condition that impacts how people perceive and interact with the world, and is diagnosed using physician assessments.
In his court filing, Paxton - aligned with the former president who is running for federal office - asserts the manufacturer and J&J "willfully ignored and sought to suppress the evidence" around paracetamol and autism spectrum disorder.
This legal action aims to force the corporations "destroy any marketing or advertising" that asserts acetaminophen is reliable for expectant mothers.
The Texas lawsuit mirrors the complaints of a assembly of mothers and fathers of children with autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder who filed suit against the makers of acetaminophen in recently.
A federal judge dismissed the legal action, declaring studies from the plaintiffs' authorities was inconclusive.