PFAS makers must face firefighters’ protective-gear claims

On September 15, Reuters reported that a federal judge allowed claims against more than 20 defendants, including 3M, DuPont and Honeywell, over alleged PFAS exposure from firefighters’ protective gear. Thirteen firefighter unions and 12 individuals seek damages and medical monitoring, and the court held that plaintiffs could proceed without outward symptoms while finding that they had sufficiently alleged a duty to warn and negligence against 3M; the allegations remain unproven. The decision extends PFAS exposure beyond environmental cleanup into product design, worker health, warnings and corporate-allocation questions involving legacy businesses and spin-offs. Manufacturers and purchasers should connect chemical inventories and supplier representations to occupational-health evidence, insurance notice and litigation holds rather than treating PFAS solely as a water-contamination issue.