JPML count: 4,022 pending in MDL 3094 and 216 in MDL 3163

The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation's monthly case count, dated September 1, 2026, puts MDL 3094 — the consolidated federal litigation over alleged gastrointestinal injuries from GLP-1 medicines — at 4,022 pending actions out of 4,056 total filed. The companion vision-loss proceeding, MDL 3163, stands at 216 pending out of 216 filed. Both sit before Judge Karen S. Marston in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ^[1].

The numbers mark another month of steady growth. A plaintiffs'-firm tracker that follows the same JPML statistics reported 3,928 pending cases in MDL 3094 and 200 in MDL 3163 as of August 1, 2026 ^[2]. That works out to roughly 94 more pending stomach-injury cases and 16 more eye cases in a single month. The gap between 4,056 filed and 4,022 pending in MDL 3094 means about three dozen cases have closed or been terminated since the MDL was created in February 2024 ^[2]. In MDL 3163, filed and pending are the same number — no case has yet dropped off.

What the two dockets cover

MDL 3094 gathers personal-injury suits alleging that GLP-1 receptor agonists cause gastroparesis and other gastrointestinal injuries. The court's own description names Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus (semaglutide, made by Novo Nordisk) and Trulicity and Mounjaro (Eli Lilly) ^[1]. The panel centralized the cases because they share questions about whether the manufacturers knew or should have known about the risks, whether warnings to patients and prescribers were adequate, and whether the companies made misleading safety statements. Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly deny the allegations ^[1].

MDL 3163 is newer and much smaller. It covers claims of non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, or NAION — a form of sudden vision loss in one eye. It was created December 15, 2025, on Eli Lilly's motion and over plaintiffs' opposition, and has grown from roughly 20 cases at creation to 216 now ^[2]. On July 2, 2026, Case Management Order 12 authorized early cross-cutting motion practice on general causation and preemption ^[2].

Neither proceeding has produced a settlement, a verdict, or a court finding that these medicines caused anyone's injury, according to the tracker, which is published by a firm that advertises for these cases ^[2]. No bellwether trials are scheduled in either MDL ^[2].

Why it matters for patients

A rising case count is not evidence that a drug is unsafe. It reflects how many people have filed lawsuits and how easy it is to file — MDL 3094 cases are filed directly into the Philadelphia court, which speeds the tally ^[2]. The legal questions about whether these medicines cause gastroparesis or NAION have not been answered by any court.

What may matter more to patients than the raw numbers is the labeling picture. European regulators added NAION as a "very rare" side effect in June 2025, and Australia followed in July 2026, but the U.S. label was unchanged as of August 7, 2026 ^[2]. That divergence means an American patient reading the package insert sees different information than a European one.

The litigation has also narrowed in ways that affect who can sue. An August 15, 2025 ruling on Cross-Cutting Issue 1 held that gastroparesis claims require an objective gastric emptying study, and excluded two plaintiff diagnostic experts ^[2]. Earlier rulings dismissed design-defect and several other theories, leaving failure-to-warn as the main track ^[2].

What happens next

Judge Marston is holding a Rule 702 evidentiary hearing — commonly called a Daubert hearing — on Cross Cutting Issues 2 and 3 from September 14 through September 18, 2026 ^[1]. It will decide which expert testimony the litigation can proceed with ^[2]. Briefing on the competing motions to exclude experts was completed in early August 2026 ^[2]. A ruling date has not been announced. Separately, two New Jersey state multicounty litigations, one per injury track, are pending in Bergen County before Judge Gregg A. Padovano ^[2].