CHICAGO (Legal Newsline) - A class action lawsuit against Walgreens has failed, as a Chicago federal judge recently ruled the label on its hydrogen peroxide is regulated by the federal government.
Judge Jorge Alonso on July 20 granted the company's motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by plaintiff Jim Novotney and attorney Spencer Sheehan. They had sued over 3% hydrogen peroxide sold at Walgreens that featured a label that said it helps with minor cuts and abrasions.
Not so, they claimed, citing medical studies and the chance of toxicity. "Though hydrogen peroxide may kill some potentially harmful acteria, it destroys a greater amount of positive bacteria and healthy cells that promote healing," the lawsuit said.
Walgreens moved to dismiss on Nov. 7 by arguing it would be inappropriate for a judge to penalize the company for a label that complies with Food and Drug Administration labeling requirements that started in 1991 and became final in 2021.
Those requirements, called a "Tentative Final Monograph," pertained to first aid antiseptics and did not include the word "treatment," only "help" when addressing infections in minor cuts, scrapes and burns.
"But the Court agrees with Defendant that whether the FDA specifically approved the use of the word 'treatment' is beside the point," Judge Alonso wrote.
"The content of the product's label as it relates to its safety or effectiveness is a matter of federal law, and by claiming that some other terminology is necessary to ensure that the label is not misleading, Plaintiff impermissibly claims that state law imposes requirements that are different from, additional to, or otherwise not identical with, the requirements of the (Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act)."