What Is a Vaccine Injury?

If you have heard of the term “Vaccine Injury” then you may be looking for information about the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (NVICP). The NVICP is a federal program which compensates persons who experience a Vaccine Injury, which occurs when a child or adult experiences certain adverse reactions after receiving one of several vaccinations covered under the NVICP.

The vaccines in the NVICP go by several different names: diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, DTaP, Tdap, DTP, P, DTP-Hib, DT, Td, TT, measles, mumps, rubella, MMR vaccine, hepatitis A vaccine, hepatitis B vaccine, Hib, varicella vaccine, chicken pox vaccine, rotavirus vaccine, pneumococcal conjugate, meningococcal, PCV vaccine, Prevnar, polio, OPV, IPV, flu vaccine, trivalent influenza vaccine, seasonal flu vaccine, human papillomavirus vaccine, HPV vaccine, Cervarix, and Gardasil. Injuries from these vaccines often include Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP), motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN), Miller-Fisher syndrome, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP), transverse myelitis, demyelinating disease, autoimmune disorders and diseases, immunodeficiencies, seizure disorder, epilepsy, neurologic disease, chronic fatigue syndrome, reactive arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM), thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), encephalomyelitis, encephalopathy, anaphylaxis and anaphylactic shock, brachial neuritis, shoulder injury resulting from vaccine administration (SIRVA), granuloma, tendinopathy, adhesive capsulitis, frozen shoulder, post-injection inflammatory reaction, subacromial bursitis, bicipital tendonitis, impingement syndrome, Parsonage-Turner syndrome, and other adverse reactions.  There are other criteria which must be met for a person to be eligible under the NVICP.

Thus if a person has had one of these vaccines, and suffered one of these illnesses or conditions, they may have a Vaccine Injury and entitled to compensation from the NVICP.  Claims for compensation to the NVICP are made to the U.S. Court of Federal Claims located in Washington, D.C., by filing a petition.  Most “petitioners” are represented by lawyers. A lawyer representing a petitioner must be admitted to practice in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.

When the firm is contacted by a person who believes he, she, or a family member may have suffered a Vaccine Injury, there is no fee to visit about the claim, or to investigate the claim, or to pursue the claim if it has a reasonable basis.  Also, the firm normally pays the expenses incurred to pursue the claim. Therefore, the case can be handled free of charge. And if the claim is paid, any fees and costs are paid separately from the amount the person receives, so that the recovery is not reduced by legal expenses. Therefore, there is no reason for a person to not be represented by a lawyer in a Vaccine Injury claim.

You can contact us about a possible Vaccine Injury by visiting our Contact page. And you can learn more about the NVICP and the firm's representation of persons with possible Vaccine Injury claims by visiting the Vaccine Injury page and other articles in our Blog.