New Jersey Mom Sues Baby Formula Maker Abbott Laboratories For Wrongful Death of Baby

baby formula Baby Formula Shortage Abbott Abbott Laboratories Nicole Cresap

By Joel Brussels , Parent Herald May 23, 11:58 am

Photo: (Photo : SAMUEL CORUM/AFP via Getty Images)

A woman from New Jersey became the latest mother to sue Abbott Laboratories, blaming the baby formula manufacturer for the death of her premature baby last year.

Nicole Cresap, whose infant daughter died back in December, is suing Abbott in the US District Court in Chicago. The Windy City is home to the company's Nutritional Products Division. Cresap's lawsuit takes aim on Abbott's assertion that the company's Similac baby formula was safe for premature babies.

According to the Daily Record, the lawsuit claims that Abbott's products could cause a bacterial illness called necrotizing enterocolitis that is fatal in newborns. Cresap's daughter, Kennedy Hayes, suffered from that condition.

16 lawsuits now filed against Abbott across U.S.

She was placed in neonatal care at Morristown Medical Center at the end of December last year. According to the report, Cresap's baby, who weighed one pound and nine ounces at birth, was at first placed on a combination of formula and breast milk.

By February, the young girl was fed on Similac Special Care 24 High Protein and 30 High Protein. According to the New York Post, the baby was then diagnosed a month later with NEC, a gastrointestinal disorder, and underwent surgery to remove her intestines.

According to the suit, she suffered cardiac arrest and multi-system organ failure, leading to her death. There are now 16 lawsuits filed against Abbott across the United States, according to US Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation.

Abbott CEO Robert Ford issues apology to America as baby formula shortage worsens

Abbott Laboratories CEO Robert Ford offered an apology on Saturday in a new op-ed in the Washington Post. Ford acknowledged his company's role in a nationwide shortage of baby formula, which this week moved the Biden administration and Congress to take emergency actions to alleviate it.

He detailed steps the company is taking to stem the baby formula shortage, vowing that they are making significant investments to ensure this never happens again. Ford noted that the shortage was sparked by the company's recall back in February of formula made at Abbott Nutrition's facility in Sturgis, Michigan.

The recall took place after federal health officials found a potentially deadly bacteria in the plant, which was responsible for producing up to 25 percent of the country's baby formula, according to a report by CNBC.

Ford said they take great pride in manufacturing nutrition and formula to feed America's infants, including the most vulnerable but the past few months have distressed them. Ford then issued an apology, saying "We're sorry to every family we've let down since our voluntary recall exacerbated our nation's baby formula shortage."

Ford wrote that Abbott will not take risks when it comes to the health of children. Four infants who drank formula from Abbott's Michigan plant were hospitalized with bacterial infections, two of whom later died.