Why COVID vaccine injury petitions need to be moved into The Vaccine Court
Last week I was asked to present to an astute group of individuals, all way more intelligent than I, a discussion about the CounterMeasures Injury Compensation Program known as the CICP.
Several in the group were from Europe including the UK, Germany and others from Africa and Canada. They asked some very serious questions, most about why the CICP even existed and why does the US government ignore those who were injured from a COVID vaccine.
Originally, I was going to talk how COVID vaccine injury compensation schemes or programs differ amongst countries around the world.
However, after interviewing Caroline Pover and Brianne Dressen a couple of days prior of the presentation, about a new book, Worth the Shot?, telling the story of Brianne Dressen, my focus shifted to the COVID vaccine injury petitions, all 13,500 of them sitting in the CICP.
I want to start the conversation, the much needed discussion of allowing every petition including those who have been dismissed, to be refiled into the NVICP. It is the best way for our own government to treat those who thought they were doing the right thing about getting the COVID vaccine to help stop the spread of the virus.
Below, I will layout my case for allowing pending and dismissed CICP petitions to be reinstated in the NVICP. Then petitioners will have their “day in court” to prove their injury was caused by the vaccine, with the help of experienced vaccine injury attorneys and medical experts to prosecute their case. Something that is missing in the CICP.
The Secretary of HHS can do this with a stroke of his pen. But will he? The Sec’y of HHS’s first step, he must recognize and list the COVID-19 vaccines as part of the NVICP. He can do this himself. The only hurdle would be waiting for Congress to attach a tax or levy. Congress can do this. They have punted on all forms of legislation to reform the compensation programs. But to just add a tax to a vaccine, that is not a big lift or ask of Congress. But will they? They should and do it quickly.
OK, how many petitions are there? How many were dismissed and why?
Let’s start with the most current reporting by HRSA. October 2024 data.
Every month, around the 15th - 20th, HRSA will release a report stating overall numbers of petitions and actions taken since 2010 when the CICP was developed. Prior to the COVID era, approximately 550 petitions dealt with the H1N1 vaccine injuries, mainly GBS, plus a few scattered petitions from smallpox or anthrax vaccine injuries.
Below is the combined report from HRSA for all CICP petitions since 2010 which includes COVID petitions.
Compensation for claims since 2010 total a bit over $6 million dollars. Click here for the complete list.
And payment for 2 death cases.
In June 2021, after threats of lawsuits by myself and a couple of media internet news-sites, HRSA started to release monthly statistics of CICP and also a dedicated section for COVID related petitions relating to the vaccine, medical devices and anti-viral meds including Remdesivir.
The COVID decisions that were compensated thru the end of 2023, accounted for only 11 petition reimbursements for medical expenses not covered by insurance or other means.
Since January 1, 2024 another 6 petitions have been “compensated”. Since 2021, HRSA received 12,854 petitions for COVID countermeasure injuries, consisting of 9,682 from vaccines and 3,172 from other COVID countermeasures.
October 2024 report shows 13,468 petitions received with 10,401 from vaccines. The number of petitions received has slowed down considerably since beginning of 2023, mainly because of the knowledge that the CICP is the place for people have the right to file and lose.
But HRSA has been very busy at dismissing claims. Over 98% of all COVID related claims have been dismissed as of October 1, 2024. Only 1 claim was compensated for an actual injury or death claim. I wrote about it October 2nd of this year. The rest of the claims, all for reimbursed for medical expenses not covered by insurance.
The dismissals are very troubling. Of the 3,256 COVID petitions dismissed, 2,029 were the result of missing the one year from the date of admin of the vax to filing date. The vast majority of these petitions, the injured person was not informed of this program. The lack of any informed consent regarding the ability to file a claim is the deciding factor that should allow petitioners to file in the NVICP.
Once the Sec’y of HHS lists the COVID vaccines as part of the NVICP, in the past with influenza and Hep A and B vaccines where added, an injured person or their estate/guardian has 2 years to file the claim with an 8 year “look-back” provision. Meaning if this process of listing the COVID vaccine as part of the NVICP happens in 2025, injured persons have 2 years from the listing date (2027) to file a claim for a COVID vaccine injury that occurred as far back as 2017. This procedure is only used for adding new vaccines to the program.
Another 559 out of the 3,256 dismissals are for lack of medical records.
In the summer of 2022, I interviewed 133 persons who filed or attempted to file a petition in the CICP. One of the problem areas for nearly all of them was the inability to obtain medical records on a timely basis. Another problem was actually getting a proper diagnosis of their medical condition. The vast majority of doctors would not connect the vaccine with their patient’s medical condition.
Additionally for many of the injured, their medical condition kept morphing or changing or something else would develop. So how is a person expect to file a petition when fighting doctors who will not address the root cause of the person’s medical condition, then make it difficult by not helping their patient obtain the proper medical records? Then to make matters worse, the injured person is expected to outline their exact medical condition in a very small text box on the online application for benefits.
Standard of proof is a very subjective in the CICP. Here is the direct quote from HRSA on how they measure the viability of a claim.
To establish a covered injury in such circumstances, the Secretary must determine that the injury sustained was the direct result of the administration or use of a covered countermeasure. Under the PREP Act, the Secretary may only make such determinations based on compelling, reliable, valid, medical and scientific evidence (section 319F–4(b)(4) of the PHS Act (42 U.S.C. 247d– 6e(b)(4)). As described in § 110.20(d), requesters with such claims may need to submit sufficient relevant medical documentation or scientific evidence (such as studies published in peer-reviewed medical literature). In evaluating such claims, the Secretary will take into consideration relevant medical and scientific evidence, including relevant medical records. As provided under the PREP Act, this determination is not reviewable by any court (section 319F–4(b)(5)(C) of the PHS Act (42 U.S.C. 247d–6e(b)(5)(C)). Temporal association between administration or use of the covered countermeasure and onset of the injury (i.e., the injury occurs a certain time after the administration or use) is not sufficient, by itself, to prove that an injury is the direct result of a covered countermeasure.
With no specific injury table for COVID vaccine injuries, the CICP led by the Sec’y of HHS, can and has done, denying all but 2% using the above language to weasel out of any compensation.
Just to recap, the majority of petitions filed in the CICP are being dismissed at a rate of 98% of those filed. And only 1 truly compensated case for COVID vaccine causing myocarditis leading to death after 3.5 years for COVID related petitions in the CICP. Let the injured file in the NVICP.
No informed consent regarding a person’s legal rights and options regarding a possible vaccine injury. Let the injured file in the NVICP.
Very arbitrary standard of proof standard used to make decisions in the CICP. Let the injured file in the NVICP.
Most doctors refuse to make any connection between the COVID vaccines and the medical conditions of the injured. Let the injured file in the NVICP.
Abusive statute of limitations of 1 year. Let the injured file in the NVICP.
Extremely difficult to obtain medical records from hospitals, clinics or from doctors. Let the injured filed in the NVICP.
Next post will discuss the financing of the expected 50,000 to 100,000 petitions that will be filed over the next couple of years if all COVID vaccines injury claims are allowed into the NVICP.
Keep learning, keep challenging yourself, and always, always question authority.
Wayne Rohde, author of 2 books on the National Vaccine Injury Compensation programs. www.thevaccinecourt.com