The maker of a frozen supplemental milkshake popular among long-term care facility patients is being sued after the shakes were linked to 14 deaths and 42 cases of listeria.
The supplemental shakes, sold under the brands Lyons ReadyCare and Sysco Imperial, were sold to long-term care facilities and hospitals up until the shakes were recalled in February over listeria cases linked to the products.
The family of John Willis Sr., a California man who died from a listeria infection after consuming an infected shake, is now suing Lyons Magnus LLC and Prairie Farms Dairy, Inc., claiming the brand’s negligence caused his wrongful death, according to the complaint.
Willis was in the hospital recovering from another illness when he drank a listeria-infected supplemental shake, the law firm representing the family said in a post on their website.
Willis was just one of 14 people who died from cases of listeria linked to the milkshakes. There were 42 people infected with the outbreak strain across 21 states, including Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and West Virginia.
The illnesses date back to about August 2018, though investigators had struggled previously to identify the source, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said earlier this year when the shakes were voluntarily recalled.
Of the 42 people, 41 were hospitalized. The deaths were reported from nine states: California, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, New York, Tennessee, Texas and Washington.
Most of the people infected in the outbreak were living in long-term care facilities or were hospitalized before they became sick, the law firm said.
The lawyers also noted that the true number of cases in the outbreak was likely higher than reported because some people recover without medical care or are not tested for listeria.
Symptoms of listeria usually start within two weeks after eating contaminated food, but can begin as early as the same day or as late as 10 weeks later, according to the FDA.
Mild symptoms may include a fever, muscle aches, nausea, tiredness, vomiting, and diarrhea. If the more severe form of listeriosis develops, symptoms may include headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions, the agency says.
