Issued: 9 October 2024, London
UK
Statement: Zantac (ranitidine) litigation - settlement
agreements reached
· GSK to resolve 93% (approximately 80,000 cases) of U.S. state
court Zantac product liability cases for up to $2.2
billion
· Separate settlement of qui
tam complaint for $70 million
· Settlements agreed with no admission of liability
· No change to GSK's growth agenda or investment
plans
GSK plc (LSE/NYSE: GSK) today
announced that it has reached agreements with 10 plaintiff firms
who together represent 93% (approximately
80,000) of the Zantac (ranitidine) state
court product liability cases pending against GSK in the United
States.
Under these agreements, GSK will make
an aggregate payment of up to $2.2 billion to resolve all U.S.
state court product liability cases handled by those plaintiff
firms that meet agreed eligibility and participation criteria (the
"State Courts Settlement").
The participating plaintiff firms are
unanimously recommending to their clients that they accept the
terms of the State Courts Settlement, which is expected to be fully
implemented by the end of H1 2025. Terms of the agreements are
confidential.
GSK also confirms that it has reached
an agreement in principle to pay a total of $70 million to resolve
the Zantac qui tam
complaint previously filed by Valisure. The agreement in principle
is subject to final approval from the Department of Justice (the
"Qui Tam
Settlement").
GSK has not admitted any liability in
the State Courts Settlement or in the agreement in principle for
the Qui Tam Settlement.
While the scientific consensus remains that there is no consistent
or reliable evidence that ranitidine increases the risk of any
cancer, GSK strongly believes that these settlements are in the
best long-term interests of the company and its shareholders as
they remove significant financial uncertainty, risk and distraction
associated with protracted litigation.
GSK expects to recognise an
incremental charge in its Q3 Results for 2024 of £1.8 billion ($2.3
billion) in relation to the State Courts Settlement, the
Qui Tam Settlement, and
the remaining 7% of pending state court product liability cases, partially offset
by expected reduced future legal costs.
The costs of these settlements will
be funded through existing resources. There are no changes to GSK's
growth agenda or investment plans for R&D as a result of these
settlements.
About GSK
GSK is a global biopharma company
with a purpose to unite science, technology, and talent to get
ahead of disease together. Find out more at gsk.com.
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Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking
statements
GSK cautions
investors that any forward-looking statements or projections made
by GSK, including those made in this announcement, are subject to
risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ
materially from those projected. Such factors include, but are not
limited to, those described under Item 3.D "Risk factors" in GSK's
Annual Report on Form 20-F for 2023, and GSK's Q2 Results for
2024.
This announcement contains inside
information. The person responsible for arranging the release of
this announcement on behalf of GSK is Victoria Whyte, Company
Secretary.
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