Can I Sue for Injuries From a Vaccine?
Every day, thousands of babies and kids receive routine vaccinations at the advice of their doctors and health professionals. People are more and more interested in finding if they received injuries from a vaccine. While most parents trust that the benefits of administering a vaccine outweigh the small chance that their child will suffer a vaccine injury, some feel hesitant about taking the risk.
What d0 Injuries From a Vaccine look like?
A vaccine injury is an injury caused by vaccination. Every year, a small percentage of vaccinated individuals suffer adverse reactions to vaccinations. Reactions range from shoulder and arm pain to severe neurological conditions such as GBS, ADEM, TM, seizures, and others, and sometimes even death.
If you believe that a vaccine injured you or your child, please call an experienced personal injury lawyer right away. Vaccine litigation is highly specialized and challenging and deserves to be handled by a competent and knowledgeable attorney. The court organizes payment of reasonable attorney fees and costs in addition to any compensation award. As a petitioner, you do not have to pay any fees or costs.
The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program
In 1988, congress passed the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) in order to provide restitution to people who have suffered vaccine injury.
Common Vaccines Covered by the VICP:
- Hepatitis A Vaccine (HAV)
- Hepatitis B Vaccine (HBV)
- Pertussis Vaccine – Whooping Cough (DTaP, DTP, Tdap, P, DTP‑Hib)
- Flu Vaccine (Trivalent influenza vaccine – TIV)
- Chicken Pox Vaccine (Varicella vaccine – VZV)
- Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV)
- Rotavirus Vaccine (RV)
- Polio (OPV and IPV)
- Tetanus Vaccine (DTaP, DTP, DT, Td, Tdap, TT)
- Hemophilus influenzae type B (Hib)
- Measles, Mumps, Rubella vaccine or any of its components (MMR, MR, M, R)
- Human Papillomavirus (HPV) (Gardasil and Cervarix)
- Meningococcal vaccines (MCV4, MPSV4)
- Any combination of the vaccines above (Trivalent, Quadrivalent, etc.)
Note that new or additional vaccines could be added in the future.
How do I File a Vaccine Injury Claim?
Contact a vaccine injury lawyer to discuss the details of your case. Generally, you may file a claim if you or your child was injured by a vaccine covered by the VICP, or you are the legal representative of the estate of a person whose death may have resulted from a vaccine covered by the VICP. The statute of limitations of a vaccine injury claim is within three years from the onset of first symptoms or within two years from the date of a death.
Awards for vaccine injuries may include compensation for past and future medical expenses, pain and suffering (up to $250,000), and lost wages. In death cases the maximum recovery is set at $250,000.
If you or a loved one were injured in an accident, you have enough to deal with. Let an experienced accident attorney fight for the full compensation that you deserve. It is not uncommon to receive a settlement from the insurance company that is five to ten times bigger with the help of a lawyer. Call the caring accident attorneys at Tario & Associates, P.S. in Bellingham, WA today for a FREE consultation! We have been representing residents of Whatcom County, Skagit County, Island County and Snohomish County since 1979. You will pay nothing up front and no attorney fees at all unless we recover damages for you!
