On Wednesday, a lawyer representing a Missouri mother urged jurors to hold Abbott, Reckitt’s Mead Johnson unit, and St. Louis Children’s Hospital accountable for the severe intestinal illness her prematurely born son developed after being fed the companies’ formulas.
Tim Cronin, the attorney for Elizabeth Whitfield and her son Kaine, told jurors in a St. Louis state court that the companies had long been aware that feeding cow’s milk-based formula to extremely premature infants increases the risk of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). Despite this knowledge, he said, the companies failed to adequately inform parents, hospitals, or doctors about the risk.
“Companies have to be honest with us about their products,” Cronin stated during his opening remarks.
James Hurst, representing Abbott, countered by arguing that formula did not cause NEC and emphasized that breast milk, and to a lesser extent, donated human milk, provided protection against the disease. Cronin dismissed this distinction as “silly,” asserting that a lack of protection was effectively equivalent to causing the condition.
Hurst noted that the benefits of breast milk were already well-known among neonatologists and included in guidelines from medical groups and government agencies. He also pointed out that Abbott frequently sponsors studies and presentations that acknowledge human milk’s role in preventing NEC. “It’s in the published literature, and we discuss it constantly,” he said.
Both Hurst and Phyllis Jones, a lawyer for Mead Johnson, highlighted that Kaine had received his mother’s milk every day while in the hospital. Jones also stressed that, according to Kaine’s medical records, he received Mead Johnson’s formula only once. “He received an ounce and a bit on a single day seven years ago,” she said.
The trial is being broadcast through Courtroom View Network, and a lawyer for the hospital is expected to deliver an opening statement later.
NEC almost exclusively affects premature babies and carries an estimated fatality rate of over 20%. The current lawsuit is one of nearly 1,000 similar cases pending, and this trial is the third of its kind. It is also the first where both companies are facing trial together, along with a hospital. Previous trials resulted in verdicts of $60 million against Mead Johnson and $495 million against Abbott.
Kaine was born at St. Louis Children’s Hospital in 2017 at less than 28 weeks gestation, weighing just over 1,000 grams (about 2.2 pounds). The following month, after being fed both companies’ formulas in the neonatal intensive care unit, Kaine developed NEC. He required surgery to remove 80% of his bowel, leaving him with lifelong health issues, including malnutrition, developmental delays, and cerebral palsy, according to Cronin.
Cronin argued that the companies should have warned about the dangers of using their formulas for babies weighing under 1,500 grams (approximately 3.3 pounds) and that hospitals should prioritize donated human milk for those infants if maternal milk is unavailable. He also claimed that St. Louis Children’s Hospital should be held responsible for feeding Kaine formula, as the hospital’s protocol at the time prioritized donor milk only for babies under 1,000 grams, though the threshold was later raised to 1,500 grams.
Hurst pointed to several other factors that may have contributed to Kaine’s illness, including his extremely premature birth, multiple infections, and prolonged antibiotic treatments, which can disrupt gut bacteria. He also noted that some of Kaine’s doctors suspected a genetic condition, though no genetic testing has been conducted.
The ongoing litigation over formula has caused concern among doctors, who fear the companies may stop providing the products that hospitals need when breast milk is unavailable.
The case is K.W. v. Mead Johnson et al, Missouri Circuit Court, 22nd Judicial Circuit, City of St. Louis, No. 2222-CC06214.
