The Covid-19 vaccines are here, to many people’s relief. As with any such medical treatment however, there is inherent risk and there are many who will suffer an injury, disability or death as a result of receiving the vaccine. It’s an unfortunate reality. To that end, I want to make sure people are aware of a compensation program that exists for those who suffer adverse reactions, especially those that are lifelong disabilities and/or death.
Compensation Available Through Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP)
The vaccines have been authorized for emergency use by the FDA, meaning that certain normal testing steps were skipped so that it could be pushed to market ASAP. They are being deployed as a Countermeasure to the Covid-19 pandemic, and as such, fall under the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP) run by our United States government.
The purpose of the CICP is to allow for emergency countermeasures to be used on a widespread basis, while insulating the manufacturers from liability. This means the manufacturers cannot be sued directly by someone who suffers an injury, disability, or death from the vaccine. This does not leave this group of adversely affected people completely without recourse, however.
The CICP is an administrative system, where those adversely affected can file a claim, with the supporting documentation, to seek compensation. There is only one level of “appeal,” for anyone who’s claim is denied. This is not a court process or a legal filing. Individuals can, and do, handle this process completely on their own. Many though, do opt to have legal representation for the process, for a variety of reasons. Those reasons include concerns over submitting a strong application, and ensuring that the best evidence is submitted, to increase the likelihood of the success of their claim, to the extent possible. Part of the process requires that the claimant prove causation. So, it is up to the claimant to show that the injury, disability or death was in fact, a result of the vaccination and not some other cause.
Still more claimants seek legal representation simply to have assistance with the process, and hand the work off to someone else, so that they can focus on their health care. There is no right or wrong option, but it is important to remember a few key factors when deciding how to proceed with your claims:
– There is only ONE YEAR to file the claim, from the date of vaccination.
– Claimants get one bite at the apple. Remember, there is only one level of review, if your claim is denied, so you want the strongest evidence submitted the first time around.
– The CICP has traditionally had quite a low approval rating, coming in around 1/3 or 33% approvals. Since the decisions are not published (as with court opinions, for example) the basis of this dismal approval rating is unclear and could be attributed to many things, including insufficiently supported claims.
Next Steps
If you, or anyone you know was left injured or disabled as a result of any of the Covid-19 vaccines that are available, or any future ones that come available, you can find out more about the Compensation program here.
Since these are federal, administrative claims, I am available to assist any claimant, throughout the country with their claim process, should they choose to have legal representation.
Please share this information, so that people are aware of this compensation program, as I am not currently seeing it advertised, or even discussed on social media, the news, or elsewhere. I feel that this is crucial information that could help those families who are adversely affected and incur lost wages and high medical expenses, etc.
The compensation is capped through this program, and while likely insufficient to cover the true cost of an adverse event or death, it is certainly better than nothing, as they say. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you, or someone you know has any questions about this process. I am here to help.
If you would like for me to contact you about this matter, please click here, provide your contact information, and I will be happy to reach out.
All the best.
~Brittany Lastition
