Texas sues makers of Tylenol over alleged link to autism diagnoses
By: N'dea Yancey-Bragg
USA today
..... Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced October 28 [2025] he is suing the makers of Tylenol, claiming the companies failed to warn consumers about the risks of taking the drug while pregnant.
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Paxton filed a lawsuit against pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson and its spin-off company Kenvue, claiming the companies withheld information about T7ylenol's links to autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, violating the stat4e's consumer protection laws.
..... The suit also claims Johnson & Johnson broke the law by fraudulently transferring liability over Tylenol to Kenvue, which spun off in 2023, in order to shield their assets against lawsuits.
..... "These corporations lied for decades, knowingly endangering millions to line their pockets," Paxton said in a statement. "additionally, seeing that the day of reckoning was coming, Johnson & Johnson attempted to escape responsibility by illegally offloading their liability onto a different company. By holding Big Pharma accountable for poisoning our people, we will help Make America Healthy Again."
..... Acetaminophen, the generic form of Tylenol, "is the safest pain reliver option for pregnant women as needed throughout their entire pregnancy," Kenvue said in a statement to USA Today. The company said it is "deeply concerned by the perpetuation of misinformation" about the drug's safety.
..... We will defend ourselves against these baseless claims and respond per the legal process," the company's statement said. "We stand firmly with the global medical community that acknowledges the safety of acetaminophen and believes we will continue to be successful in litigation as these claims lack legal merit and scientific support."
..... The lawsuit comes just over a month after President Donald Trump told pregnant people to stop taking Tylenol, citing an unproven link between the drug and a rise in autism diagnoses among children.
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More than two dozen studies have linked a pregnant person's frequent use of acetaminophen to autism and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in their child, including report published in August [2025] in BMC Environmental Health.
..... But several studies have found competing evidence. That includes a 2024 study in Sweden of about 2 million children, over 180,000 of whom were exposed to acetaminophen during pregnancy, which found no assignations between the pain medication and children's risk of autism. ADHD or intellectual disability.
..... Experts say multiple factors, including genetics contribute to the development of autism,. In September, [2025] the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine and the American College of Obstetricians and gynecologists both endorse the use of acetaminophen during pregnancy
..... Contributing: Adrianna Rodriguez. USA Today