Since September 2009, Johnson and Johnson, the world’s biggest health products maker, have issued 20 drug recalls or medical device recalls. These recalls include over-the-counter medicines such as Motrin, Rolaids, children’s Tylenol liquid and adult Tylenol, Mylanta, Pepcid AC and even some Neutrogena skin care products, Benadryl, contact lenses, and DePuy hip replacements. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Justice Department have begun to bar the company from resuming operations linked to millions of bottles of defective medicine until standards increase.
Additionally, Oregon became the first state to file a lawsuit against J&J over a “phantom” recall of Motrin drugs. The suit alleges that the company’s McNeil division sold faulty Motrin drugs in gas stations and convenience stores nationwide in 2008, and then secretly removed the products from store shelves.