Leeman v. Apothecary Products, Inc.

On March 6, 2015, the parties executed an out-of-court Settlement Agreement, which resolved the allegations that whistleblower Dr. Whitney R. Leeman made against settling party Apothecary Products, Inc. (“Apothecary”).  In this matter, Leeman alleged that Apothecary sold vinyl/PVC cases for pill/medication organization containing the phthalate chemical di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (“DEHP”) in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, Apothecary agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC cases for pill/medication organization in California after February 25, 2015, unless the cases contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies, or have Proposition 65 warnings provided.  Should Apothecary provide written certification by July 15, 2015, that all vinyl/PVC cases for pill/medication organization qualify as reformulated, Leeman agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied. 

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $35,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Leeman and her counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.