EzriCare Artificial Tears Eye Drop Lawsuit 2026: Who May Have a Claim, Deadlines, and How to Choose a Lawyer

Can You Sue Over Contaminated EzriCare or Delsam Artificial Tears?

Often you can at least explore it, but only if three things line up. You need proof you used the recalled drops, medical records showing an infection or vision injury, and a filing deadline that has not run out. If those are in place, a product liability attorney may be able to evaluate a claim against the companies involved in making and selling the drops.

My read is that this is a serious, legitimate set of injury claims with a hard practical problem attached: time. The recall was in February 2023. Depending on your state, the window to file may be closing or already closed, and that single fact decides more cases than any argument about who was at fault.

This article is general information, not legal advice. It does not predict any outcome, and no court has made final liability findings that settle every case. What follows covers the background, who may qualify, how the cases work, what to keep, and how to pick a lawyer.

---

What Happened With EzriCare and Delsam Artificial Tears?

In early February 2023, federal health officials warned about a cluster of infections tied to artificial tears. The FDA warned consumers not to use EzriCare Artificial Tears and Delsam Pharma Artificial Tears, and the company recalled them. The infections involved a drug-resistant strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a bacterium that can do real damage inside the eye.

The design of the product made it worse. These were non-preserved, multi-dose bottles. A preservative is what helps keep bacteria from growing after a bottle has been opened and touched. Without it, a contaminated bottle can keep re-infecting the user. The drops were manufactured by an overseas company in India, and the FDA pointed to cGMP violations, meaning failures in required manufacturing and quality-control practices.

The CDC tracked roughly 81 infections across about 18 states. Four deaths were reported. Some patients lost vision permanently, and several had an eye surgically removed. Counts get revised, so verify current numbers with the CDC.

Item	What is publicly known
Products	EzriCare Artificial Tears; Delsam Pharma Artificial Tears
Organism	Drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Announced	February 2023 (FDA warning, company recall)
Packaging	Non-preserved, multi-dose bottles; Indian manufacturer
Regulatory finding	cGMP violations cited
CDC tally	Roughly 81 cases, about 18 states, four deaths reported, vision loss and enucleations

---

Who May Have a Claim?

Lawyers look at four things: proof of use, diagnosis, timeline and the size of the harm. A small, resolved irritation is very different from losing an eye.

Who	Why a claim may be possible	Common obstacle
Person with a serious eye infection	Used the product, then diagnosed with infection	No proof of which brand and lot
Person with vision loss or enucleation	Permanent injury, large damages	Missing culture results tying the infection to the strain
Family of someone who died	Possible wrongful death claim	Showing the cause of death links to the infection
Spouse or caregiver	Some states allow related claims	Rules vary by state
Mild, short-lived symptoms	Technically possible	Damages may be too small to justify case costs

I will be straight about the bottom row. Many firms will decline mild cases, because expert costs in a product case can be heavy. If you have a significant injury, the picture is different.

---

Where Do the Lawsuits Stand?

Personal injury and product liability suits were filed in several federal courts. Plaintiffs generally allege the drops were manufactured and distributed unsafely, that proper testing and quality controls were not followed, and that users were harmed as a result. Defendants can dispute fault and causation, and suing an overseas manufacturer adds service and jurisdiction hurdles.

That is why a single status line is misleading. Some cases may have settled, some may be pending, and some may have ended. Settlement terms are often confidential. I am not going to quote a figure, because I have no reliable one to give, and you should distrust any website that does.

Stage	What happens	Typical feel for timing
Case screening	Attorney reviews records and deadlines	A few weeks
Filing	Complaint filed in a court with jurisdiction	Weeks after retention
Discovery	Documents, depositions, expert reports	Often a year or more
Settlement talks or mediation	Efforts to resolve before trial	Varies widely
Trial	Judge or jury decides	Uncommon

---

What Compensation Categories Exist?

These are categories, not predictions.

Category	Examples
Medical expenses	Hospitalization, IV antibiotics, eye surgery, future care
Lost income	Time off work, reduced earning capacity
Physical harm	Vision loss, loss of an eye, scarring or disfigurement
Pain and suffering	Pain, anxiety, limits on daily life
Wrongful death	Funeral costs, lost support, survivors’ losses (varies by state)
Punitive damages	Sometimes pleaded; availability depends on the facts and state law

A common trap is anchoring on a big number from a different case. Verdict and settlement sizes depend on injury, evidence and defendant. See how outcomes were framed in other mass tort cases in our guides to the 3M earplug lawsuit settlement and the Roundup lawsuit settlement, and remember that none of those results carry over automatically.

---

How Do You Document a Claim?

Start with the bottle. Keep any remaining product, the box and the lot number, and photograph them. Do not throw it away and do not send it to a private lab until your lawyer says how to handle it, since chain of custody matters.

Then collect records: eye doctor and ER notes, culture and lab results, hospital and surgical records, and any test showing the strain. Add proof of purchase such as receipts, card statements or online order history. Write a dated symptom log. When did the redness start, when did you first see a doctor, when did vision change.

• Remaining bottle, box and photos showing the lot number
• Receipts or order history
• Medical records and lab results
• Pay stubs and records of missed work
• A dated timeline of symptoms and treatment
• No social media posts about your injury or the case

Also check for liens. If health insurance, Medicare or Medicaid paid for treatment, they may have a right to be repaid from a settlement. For another example of how outside payers and settlements interact, our IRS Section 104 lawsuit settlement tax guide explains how injury settlements are treated for taxes.

---

What Is the Statute of Limitations, in Plain English?

A statute of limitations is a deadline to file. It is set by state law, and it is strict. Personal injury deadlines are commonly one to three years, and a few states are shorter. Wrongful death claims can have their own deadline. Some states apply a discovery rule, which starts the clock when you knew or should have known about the injury and its cause. Other rules can pause the clock, for example for minors.

Here is the uncomfortable math. The recall dates to February 2023. If your infection happened then and your state has a two-year window, that window may have closed in early 2025. Rules like discovery and tolling can change this, but you cannot assume they do. Do not calculate it yourself. Ask a licensed attorney in your state, and do it now. Most product liability firms offer a free first consultation.

---

How Do You Choose a Lawyer?

Look for product liability experience, ideally with contaminated drugs, medical products or infection cases. A general auto accident lawyer is a different skill set. This type of case needs microbiology and ophthalmology experts, and the firm must be able to fund them.

Check	Questions to ask
Experience	Have you handled contaminated product or infection cases?
Fee	What percentage, and is it calculated before or after costs?
Costs	Who pays for experts if we lose? Is it in writing?
Deadlines	How do you calculate my state’s filing deadline?
Honesty	Do you explain the weaknesses in my case?

Walk away from anyone who guarantees a result or promises a number. If you want a primer on how the economics work in injury cases generally, read our rideshare accident lawyer compensation guide, which covers contingency structures, and the workers’ comp PTSD claim guide for how documentation shapes a medical claim.

---

Are Other Vision Injury Cases Similar?

They share a pattern: a product, a medical injury, a long evidence fight over causation. The GLP-1 NAION vision loss lawsuit guide covers a different kind of eye injury claim and shows how plaintiffs have to connect a product to a specific harm. The comparison is useful for process, not outcome.

---

What Mistakes Do People Make?

• Throwing out the bottle
• Delaying medical care while thinking about a lawsuit
• Waiting without knowing the state deadline
• Giving personal details to ads promising a “free claim check”
• Posting about the case online
• Ignoring health insurance liens
• Expecting a number from a news headline

---

Related Reading

If you are also thinking about money matters, we have guides on stock capital gains tax, AI stocks and SCHD dividend ETF investing. If you receive a settlement, talk to a tax professional about your situation.

---

This article is general information, not legal advice. It does not predict any outcome, and no court has made final liability findings that apply to all EzriCare or Delsam cases. Deadlines and eligibility depend on your state and the facts of your case, so consult a licensed attorney. For medical concerns, speak with a healthcare professional.