CLAIMANTS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE E-NEWSLETTER

Volume 6, No. 14, December 16, 2009

Contact the CAC at:  info@tortcomm.org or

phone: (419) 394-0717

fax:  (419) 394-1748

 

 

Sybil Niden Goldrich

Ernest Hornsby, Esq

Dianna Pendleton-Dominguez, Esq.

 

 

This is the 68th e-newsletter (Vol. 6, No. 14) from the Claimants' Advisory Committee (CAC) in the Dow Corning bankruptcy Settlement Plan.  You were sent a copy of the newsletter because our records show that you requested to be on the mailing list.  If you wish to unsubscribe, click here or to reply to this newsletter, send an email to: info@tortcomm.org.  Please do not hit "Reply" to this email address.  Please use the email address:  info@tortcomm.org.

 

Requests for copies of claim forms or inquiries about the status of a claim should be directed to the Settlement Facility at info@sfdct.com or 866-874-6099.  The Claimants' Advisory Committee does not have access to individual claimant files to answer these kinds of questions.

 

 

1.             STATUS OF APPEALS REGARDING TISSUE EXPANDERS AND DISABILITY "A"

 

Tissue Expanders – This issue is now fully briefed and pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit.  A copy of all briefs are available on the CAC website at www.tortcomm.org.  We anticipate a date for oral argument in the first half of 2010.

 

       Disability A -  Dow Corning filed its appellate brief and the CAC has filed its Response.  Both briefs are available on the CAC website at www.tortcomm.org.  Dow Corning's Reply Brief is due by December 28, 2009.  We will post a copy on our website when it is filed.  We also anticipate a date for oral argument in the first half of 2010.

 

 

2.      REMINDER:  MDL 926 CLAIMS OFFICE UPDATE

 

This is a reminder to all women who have or had a breast implant made by Baxter (Heyer-Schulte, American Hospital Supply, etc.), Bristol (MEC, Natural Y, Surgitek, etc.) and/or 3M (3M, McGhan Medical) that the MDL 926 Claims Office will stop accepting claims for the Revised Settlement Program ("RSP") on December 15, 2010.  The RSP is a 15 year settlement that began in December 1995 and will end in December 2010. 

 

For more information about the RSP, contact the MDL 926 Claims Office at the toll free number:  1-800-600-0311 and/or visit their website at www.claimsoffice-926.com.

 

The closure of the RSP will not affect claims  in the Dow Corning Settlement.  The Dow Corning Settlement has a separate claims office and deadlines.  The Dow Corning Settlement will continue accepting Explant Claims to June 2, 2014 and will accept Disease Claims to June 3, 2019.

 

3.      SETTLEMENT FACILITY – DOW CORNING TRUST UPDATES

 

A.            Update on Disease Processing Status – We are informed that the SF-DCT is current in processing new Disease Option 1 claims in  Classes 5 and 6 (Dow Corning Breast Implant Claimants).  They are processing Requests for Re-Review (RAI's) submitted as of August 2009.  The SF-DCT is processing Disease Option 2 claims submitted as of February 2009, and is processing RAI's submitted as of September 2009.

 

B.             SF-DCT Issues New List of Acceptable Affirmative Statements – The SF-DCT has updated its list of physicians who used Dow Corning breast implants exclusively.  This list is on the CAC website under "Product Identication" issues.  If your physician's name is on this list and you have documentation showing you were implanted during the years listed on the chart, then you may have acceptable proof of a Dow Corning implant.  For more information, contact the SF-DCT at info@tortcomm.org.

 

C.             The SF-DCT will send letters to approximately 60,000 claimants (and their attorney of record) who have been approved for either a Rupture and/or Disease Claim to verify that they have a current, valid address.  It is very important to keep your address and contact information updated with the SF-DCT so that important letters, payments and updates can be sent to you.

 

D.            SF-DCT Policy – If you receive a Disease Notification of Status letter that has a deficiency for one disease / disability but approves a lower paying disease/disabilty, you must either fix the deficiency by the 1-year cure deadline or the SF-DCT will automatically issue payment to you for the lower disease / disability level at which you were approved.  If your disease/disability claim is not approved at any level and you do not cure the deficiency by the cure deadline set out in your Notification of Status letter, you may accept the $2,000 Expedited Release Payment (which closes out your claim permanently) or apply for a  "new compensable condition that manifests after the conclusion of the one-year cure period."  See Annex A a Section 7.09(b)(ii).

 

E.             Class 7 – The majority of eligible Class 7 claimants have been paid either the Expedited Release Payment of $600 or the $3,000 Disease Cash-Out Offer.  Because of the processing delays for Class 7, the SF-DCT will be sending out letters offering the $3,000 Disease Cash-Out Offer to those claimants who had previously rejected it.  Class 7 also has an open issue about what constitutes "marshaling" for purposes of eligibility for payment from Class 7.  This issue remains pending.

 

4.   UPDATE ON PREMIUM PAYMENTS

 

We know many of you are anxious to receive a "Premium Payment."  (Premium Payments are available only to approved Disease claimants and approved Rupture claimants.)  We are continuing our efforts with the Finance Committee urging them to recommend that these payments be made and then for the District Court to approve them.  The issue is still under discussion with the Finance Committee.   We are working with them and the Independent Assessor to analyze the existing claims, project future claims, and to ensure that sufficient funds are available to pay all claims.  The Plan requires that this analysis be done quarterly as well as annually.  As soon as we know anything more, we will update our website and newsletter.

 

5.    SETTLEMENT FACILITY PAYMENTS TO CLAIMANTS –  $1.150 BILLION

 

The SF-DCT issued $4.5 million in payments for approved claims during November 2009.  The largest category of payments was for Disease claims for Class 5 claimants.  Since the Effective Date of the Plan on June 1, 2004, the SF-DCT has paid out $1.15 billion in approved claims.  Specific details about the types of claims and amounts paid can be found on the CAC website at www.tortcomm.org at "Claims Data."

 

6.    DEADINE REMINDERS

 

Please mark your calendar with the following claim submission deadlines.  Please note that these deadlines mean that your claim forms and materials must be received by the SF-DCT by the posted deadline.  Please mail all forms early enough so that they are received by the deadline listed below.  If your claim form is not received by the deadline listed below, you will not be permitted to file a claim later.  The filing deadlines are not the same as "cure deadlines." Cure deadlines are individual deadlines that are set out in Notification of Status letters following the SF-DCT's review of your claim.

 

 

Deadline Date

Type of Deadline

June 2, 2014

Explant Claims submission deadline for timely filed claimants in Classes 5, 6.1 and 6.2 (NOTE:  this deadline does NOT apply to NOI claimants or Late Claimants)

June 3, 2019

Disease or Expedited Release Claim submission deadline for all claims in Classes 5, 6.1 and 6.2 (this deadline does NOT apply to Late Claimants)

 

_______________________________________________________________________

If you would like to read prior CAC e-newsletters, they are available on the CAC website by clicking on "Electronic Newsletter."   We urge you to visit the CAC website (www.tortcomm.org) on a regular basis to download or view relevant documents and read updates and new information.  To contact the CAC, send an email to:  info@tortcomm.org or send a letter to the Post Office Box address for the CAC at: 

 

Claimants' Advisory Committee

P.O. Box 665

St. Marys, Ohio  45885

 

Phone Number:  (419) 394-0717

Fax Number:  (419) 394-1748

Email:  info@tortcomm.org

 

NOTICE:  This document is copyrighted.  You are not authorized to post it on any website without express, prior written permission of the Claimants' Advisory Committee.