Texas Top Legal Officer Sues Acetaminophen Makers Over Autism Claims
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is taking legal action against the manufacturers of Tylenol, alleging the firms concealed potential risks that the pain reliever posed to pediatric neurological development.
This legal action arrives four weeks after President Donald Trump promoted an unsubstantiated connection between using Tylenol - alternatively called acetaminophen - during pregnancy and autism spectrum disorder in offspring.
The attorney general is suing Johnson & Johnson, which formerly manufactured the medication, the only pain reliever recommended for women during pregnancy, and the current manufacturer, which currently produces it.
In a statement, he stated they "betrayed America by profiting off of pain and marketing drugs ignoring the dangers."
The company asserts there is lacking scientific proof linking Tylenol to autism.
"These corporations deceived for years, deliberately risking millions to line their pockets," Paxton, a Republican, declared.
The manufacturer commented that it was "deeply concerned by the spread of false claims on the safety of acetaminophen and the potential impact that could have on the health of US mothers and children."
On its website, Kenvue also stated it had "consistently assessed the applicable studies and there is no credible data that demonstrates a established connection between using acetaminophen and autism."
Groups speaking for physicians and healthcare providers concur.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has declared paracetamol - the key substance in Tylenol - is among limited choices for pregnant women to manage pain and elevated temperature, which can create serious health risks if ignored.
"In more than two decades of studies on the utilization of acetaminophen in pregnancy, no reliable research has definitively established that the consumption of paracetamol in any stage of gestation results in neurological conditions in offspring," the association said.
The court filing references recent announcements from the Trump administration in claiming the medication is potentially dangerous.
Recently, Trump raised alarms from public health officials when he instructed pregnant women to "resist strongly" not to use Tylenol when ill.
Federal regulators then issued a notice that doctors should contemplate reducing the use of Tylenol, while also mentioning that "a causal relationship" between the drug and autism spectrum disorder in minors has not been established.
The Health Department head Kennedy, who supervises the FDA, had vowed in spring to initiate "comprehensive study program" that would identify the cause of autism in a short period.
But experts advised that finding a unique factor of autism spectrum disorder - thought by researchers to be the outcome of a complex mix of inherited and external influences - would not be simple.
Autism spectrum disorder is a type of lifelong neurodivergence and impairment that influences how people encounter and interact with the world, and is recognized using doctors' observations.
In his lawsuit, the attorney general - who supports Trump who is running for the Senate - claims Kenvue and J&J "willfully ignored and sought to suppress the science" around paracetamol and autism spectrum disorder.
This legal action aims to force the firms "remove any commercial messaging" that asserts acetaminophen is secure for expectant mothers.
The Texas lawsuit parallels the grievances of a collection of guardians of children with autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder who took legal action against the manufacturers of acetaminophen in recently.
The court rejected the case, saying investigations from the family's specialists was not conclusive.