Feb. 17 (UPI) — Officials for Germany-based Bayer have agreed to pay $7.25 billion to settle a class action filed by those who say its Roundup weedkiller caused them or their loved ones to develop cancer.
The proposed settlement would create a fund to pay for existing and future claims filed by those who say the weed killer caused non-Hodgkin lymphoma, which is blood cancer that forms in the body’s lymphatic system – most often in the lymph nodes — and spreads to other organs.
Bayer filed the proposed settlement in the city of St. Louis Circuit Court on Tuesday that also would include a separate Durnell case that is before the Supreme Court.
“The proposed class settlement agreement, together with the Supreme Court case, provides an essential path out of the litigation uncertainty and enables us to devote our full attention to furthering the innovations that lie at the core of our mission: Health for all, Hunger for none,” said Bayer Chief Executive Officer Bill Anderson.
“This litigation and the resulting cost underscore the need for guidance from the Supreme Court on clear regulation in American agriculture.”
“The class settlement and Supreme Court case are both necessary to help bring the strongest, most certain and most timely containment to this litigation.”
Bayer subsidiary Monsanto produces the popularly used Roundup weedkiller and will make annual payments into the settlement fund over the next 21 years.
Monsanto officials do not admit to any wrongdoing and said they agreed to the settlement to end the tens of thousands of lawsuits filed against it and stop more from being filed.
The settlement applies to those who say they were exposed to Roundup before Tuesday and who have a medical diagnosis of non-Hodgkin lymphoma or are diagnosed with it within 16 years of the proposed settlement gaining final approval.