COVID-19 Vaccine Injury Update

Article Date: October 2nd, 2023 by David J. Carney, Esq. (greenlegalteam.com).

There are several issues that are currently undecided that have stalled the progress of providing a forum for compensation to the injured. First, there is currently no forum or court that is authorized to hear and adjudicate COVID-19 vaccine injuries.

When the COVID-19 vaccine was created and administered to the public, the administrators and manufacturers of the vaccine were protected from liability for all injuries that resulted. In addition, because it was a pandemic vaccine, the vaccine was ineligible to be placed in the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (NVICP) that provides compensation for pain and suffering, medical bills, lost wages, and attorney’s fees. Adding the COVID-19 Vaccine to the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program will take an act of Congress.

Second, for the COVID-19 vaccine to be placed in the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, an excise tax needs to be added to the vaccine’s sales to further fund the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. This takes an act of Congress.

Third, when the COVID-19 vaccine was administered to the public during the pandemic, the US Department of Health and Human Services attempted to placate the public by allowing injury claims to be filed in the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program, which does not compensate for attorney’s fees or pain and suffering. To date, only 3 claims have been paid from the CICP totaling less than $5,000.  If you have a case in the CICP currently, it is unlikely to be paid and meaningful compensation.

Now, we need to update you on the ongoing efforts to provide meaningful compensation forums for those injured from the COVID-19 vaccine. Two years ago, Congressman Doggett (D-TX) introduced a bill in the US House of Representatives to include the COVID-19 vaccine in the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. The bill progressed but eventually was stalled during the 2021-2022 Congressional Session. Recently, Congressman Doggett reintroduced this same bill in the House of Representatives, and it would increase the pain and suffering allowances, include the COVID-19 vaccine, and increase the number of special masters that would adjudicate the claims to allow for faster resolution.  The bill seems to have bipartisan support although it is moving slowly. Further, any case currently filed in the CICP will be automatically moved over to the NVICP. For our clients, there are only positives with this piece of legislation, and it has our full support.

There is a second bill out of the Senate by Senator Bob Casey (D-Pa), Bernie Sanders, Mitt Romney and others. This bill is extremely harmful to our efforts to get the COVID-19 vaccine included in the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.  The bill would do the following:

  • Increase the timeline to file COVID-19 vaccine claims in the CICP. Keeping claims in the CICP would provide no real recourse to the vaccine injured.
  • It would not increase the number of special masters to adjudicate the 10,000+ COVID-19 vaccine cases
  • It would not allow compensation for those injured from the COVID-19 vaccine during the pandemic when the vaccine was under an emergency use authorization.
  • The CICP would continue to disallow pain and suffering and attorney’s fees payments.

The Vaccine Injured Petitioners Bar Association, of which I am the President, the vaccine court and manufacturers of the covid vaccines do not support this legislation. We presume that there are entities who do not want COVID-19 vaccine claims in the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program that the driving force behind S2333.

And if the COVID-19 vaccine does get added to the NVICP, then this legislation would prevent compensation for anyone that received the vaccine between March 2021 and August 2023, when the vaccine was under an Emergency Use Authorization.

What Can You Do?

Reach out to your US Representative

Reach out to your US Senator

  • Ask them NOT to support S2333 since it would eliminate any recovery for COVID-19 vaccine injury victims.

You can access the name and contact information of your US Senator. 

The more people that have COVID-19 vaccine injuries that can reach out and express their disgust for S2333 will help us terminate the bill. Furthermore, the more people that reach out and encourage their US Representatives to support HR5142 will help us get the legislation passed faster so that we can get working on filing your case and obtain the compensation you deserve.