J&J; Agrees to Settle Contact Lens Lawsuit

Johnson & Johnson’s vision-care unit has agreed to pay $60 million to settle a national contact lens antitrust lawsuit. J&J;’s Vistakon was the last defendant to settle an antitrust lawsuit brought by 32 states against three contact lens manufacturers and the American Optometric Assn.

The settlement, which may provide as much as $100 in discounts for purchases of contact lenses and eye exams, also requires J&J; to increase the availability of replacement lenses at pharmacies, by mail order and on the Internet, said New York Atty. Gen. Eliot Spitzer.

The case stems from a 1994 claim that Bausch & Lomb, Novartis, J&J; optometrists and the American Optometric Assn. conspired in refusing to sell contact lenses through alternative channels of distribution, including mail-order companies, which often offer lower prices.

Shares of New Brunswick, N.J.-based J&J; traded down $1.63 to $99 on the NYSE.