FINAL APPROVAL OF THE SETTLEMENT WAS GRANTED ON MARCH 17, 2014

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This website contains information regarding a proposed class action settlement that has been preliminarily approved by the Court in In re Hypodermic Products Antitrust Litigation, MDL No. 1730, Case No. 05-cv-1602 (JLL/CCC)

NATURE OF THE CASE

The lawsuit claims that Becton, Dickinson and Company ("BD" or the "Defendant") violated federal antitrust laws relating to the sale of its disposable hypodermic products. The lawsuit claims that BD engaged in several forms of anticompetitive practices, including: (1) imposing market share purchase requirements on hospitals or other healthcare entities; (2) bundling its goods for exclusionary purposes; (3) conspiring with Group Purchasing Organizations for the purpose of imposing exclusionary contracts; and (4) conspiring with other manufacturers to impose rebate penalties on purchasers relating to a bundle of products. The lawsuit further claims that as a result of BD's actions, BD was able to maintain a monopoly in the markets in which BD disposable hypodermic products are sold causing people and entities who purchased them from a distributor, wholesaler or other third party to pay more than they should have.

THE SETTLEMENT CLASS

The settlement class includes any entity located in Alabama, Arizona, California, the District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin who purchased BD Disposable Hypodermic Products through a distributor, wholesaler or any other third party other than BD any time between January 1, 1988 and July 30, 2013.

BD Disposable Hypodermic Products include both safety and conventional:

• hypodermic needles and syringes;
• blood collection devices, including needles, blood collection tubes and tube holders;
• IV catheters, including winged IV catheters; and
• insulin delivery devices.

You may also be included in the settlement as a Healthcare-Provider Subclass member or Non-Contract Buyer Subclass member.

Healthcare-Provider Subclass members include all Indirect Purchaser Class members who appear in the "ship to" column of BD's sales data between January 1, 1988 and July 30, 2013 for sales identified as "Rebate" or "Non-Contract" sales.

Non-Contract Buyer Subclass members include all Indirect Purchaser Class members who do not appear in the "ship to" column of BD's sales data between January 1, 1988 and July 30, 2013.

If you are a member of the settlement class, your rights and options — and the deadlines to exercise them — are explained in the Class Notice.