Abbott Settles $670M in Preterm Formula Lawsuits

Abbott Laboratories agreed to pay $670 million to settle approximately 2,000 lawsuits alleging its specialty formulas for premature infants caused a serious bowel disease, the company announced on August 20, 2026. The settlement resolves a significant portion of the litigation against the medical device and nutrition giant, though thousands of claims remain pending against Abbott and a rival manufacturer.

The agreement covers lawsuits from about 2,000 plaintiffs represented by three law firms. The claims allege that Abbott's cow's milk-based formulas, designed for hospital use, caused necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in premature newborns. NEC is a destructive intestinal disease with an estimated mortality rate above 20 percent. The largest underlying claim involved an Illinois mother, Margo Gill, who was awarded $495 million by a Missouri jury in 2024 after her daughter developed NEC following exposure to the formula. That verdict was upheld by a Missouri appeals court in May 2026. Abbott stated that interest on that judgment would have brought the total owed in the Gill case alone to roughly $600 million, making a broader settlement a more favorable option.