Justice for the Vaccine-Injured: A Ray of Hope?

A government’s treatment of the most vulnerable is a sound test of its morality. Unfortunately, one need look no further than our government’s treatment of the group of Americans suffering from serious, often debilitating, adverse events following Covid-19 vaccination to determine that Capitol Hill’s moral compass is indeed broken.

These Americans “did the right thing” by rolling up their sleeves at the urging of government officials and federal health agencies. They now find themselves with serious medical conditions such as cardiovascular injuries including myocarditis and pericarditis, neurological conditions like Guillain-Barre Syndrome, and life-altering tinnitus to name a few. Many are unable to work because of new physical limitations and most face insurmountable medical bills. 

While there is not yet consensus on the frequency of such adverse events, no credible scientist or medical professional can deny that these events occur. As evidence, the National Childhood Vaccine Act (NCVA) was enacted specifically because a legally significant number of vaccine-adverse events are unavoidable with any nationwide vaccine rollout. The Act was signed into law in 1986 after Wyeth Pharmaceutical (now a wholly owned Pfizer subsidiary) approached the Reagan Administration threatening to halt vaccine research and development unless it was granted immunity from inevitable suits.

Today, React19, a non-profit incorporated in November 2021, represents more than 36,000 Americans injured by Covid-19 vaccines. Two recent federal lawsuits, filed on behalf of React19 and its members, illustrate the government’s disgraceful treatment of the sick. 

In Smith v. HRSA, React19 is a named plaintiff seeking to strike down portions of the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (PREP Act) pertaining to the Covid-19 vaccine-injured’s ability to seek financial compensation for their losses. As it currently stands, the PREP Act provides near bulletproof immunity for vaccine manufacturers. The Covid-19 vaccine-injured are forced to lodge claims with an inadequate program known as the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP) rather than the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) – the program available to those injured by other vaccines.

Due to its unrealistic filing deadline, impossible standard of proof, paltry benefits, conflicting interests, and lack of judicial review, the CICP has currently rejected 97% of claims – compensating just eight individuals nationwide for a total of less than $29,000. 

Lead attorney Aaron Siri described the CICP as the “epitome of a kangaroo court or a star chamber — a proceeding that ignores recognized standards of law and justice, is grossly unfair, and comes to a predetermined conclusion.” The suit specifically alleges that the PREP Act’s provisions violate the Covid-19 vaccine-injured’s due process rights under the Fifth Amendment and right to a jury trial under the Seventh Amendment.

In addition to Smith, React19’s cofounder Brianne Dressen is lead plaintiff in Dressen v. Flaherty. Ms. Dressen, along with five other Covid-19 vaccine-injured petitioners, is challenging the government’s efforts to work in concert with social media companies and the Stanford Internet Observatory’s Virality Project to monitor and censor online support groups catering to the Covid-19 vaccine-injured. 

The most shocking aspect of this blatant First Amendment violation is that the White House was fully aware that “often-true content” was being censored because it might “be framed as sensation, alarmist, or shocking.” Similarly, the Virality Project recommended “adverse event stories” be suppressed because they might be “employed to push back against vaccine mandates” – not because they weren’t accurate descriptions of real-life suffering.

To knowingly silence the sick and suffering is the epitome of moral bankruptcy. Immoral leadership is undeserving of trust. Unless and until the government takes responsibility for its reprehensible behavior, the public rightfully should question all recommendations from government officials. 

Fortunately, the cries of the Covid-19 vaccine-injured have been heard by some in the halls of Congress. Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) has introduced the comprehensive bipartisan Vaccine Injury Compensation Modernization Act (H.R. 5142) and the Vaccine Access Improvement Act (H.R. 5143). This legislation would not only transfer Covid-19 injury claims to the VICP, but would also make that program far more efficient with increasingly robust benefits for the injured.

Would passing H.R. 5142 and H.R. 5143 sufficiently make up for the government’s deplorable treatment of the Covid-19 vaccine-injured? Of course not. But it’s a great place to start.

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