Leah Durant | Vaccine Attorney - Vaccine Blog

Can you be compensated for SIRVA?

It seems simple -- your doctor recommends that you get the flu shot this fall before flu season is in full swing. You receive the shot and all is well, right? Wrong. First of all, the flu shot only protects against certain strains of the flu, so you may still get sick from one of the strains that is not covered by the vaccine. Second, as with any vaccine, you may end up suffering from a serious injury to your shoulder. Fortunately, the vaccine court has been handing out higher awards recently to those who have suffered shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA).

Vaccinations for diseases and infections such as chickenpox, flu, Hepatitis B and HPV play an important role in today’s society. Unfortunately, many vaccines carry their own risks for serious injuries and complications. In this article, we highlight some of the risks associated with America’s most common vaccinations.

How to Recognize the signs of a vaccine injury and when to seek legal help with no financial cost to you.

Under current laws, the decision to exempt one’s child from the rigid and questionably-safe recommended vaccination schedule is to be kept confidential and personal. However, if Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has its way, public schools will be required to publicly reveal this information to all parents and guardians with children enrolled in a particular district – a maneuver that, depending upon your viewpoint, provides necessary health information or is calculated to bring shame and public ridicule upon parents choosing to forego vaccinating their children.

Years ago, the federal government set up a trust containing funds earmarked for those injured by vaccines. The fund, known as the Vaccine Injury Compensation Trust Fund, is seen by many as government confirmation that vaccines do indeed cause physical harm to children and adults – and victims should be compensated accordingly. As one congressman recently asserted, there may be more to the story than meets the eye (and the media).

Vaccine exemptions are a hot-button topic across the United States, and many jurisdictions have opted to uphold and fortify the notion that parents are in the best position to decide whether their child should receive vaccinations. Some states, however, have worked to whittle away at the exemptions historically offered to skeptical parents, and have essentially forced families to undergo vaccination regiments in order to enroll in public school.

One of the primary functions of the immune system is to distinguish between the body and foreign agents, keeping the individual healthy and strong while at the same time attacking and destroying outside invaders.  Guillain-Barre syndrome (or GBS) is an autoimmune disease that occurs when the body’s immune system malfunctions and begins attacking its own nervous system. In patients diagnosed with GBS, the myelin sheath that covers the nerves and assists with signal transmission is attacked during a process called demyelination. Unlike Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (or CIDP), the chronic form of the disease, GBS presents quickly and is frequently followed by some sort of infection or illness, and in some cases follows administration of a flu shot.  GBS following flu vaccination is marked by tingling and weakness in the arms and legs.  If left undiagnosed and untreated, severe forms of GBS may lead to whole body paralysis, hospitalization, or even death.

Following a string of injury reports, a group known as the European Medicines Agency has announced its intentions to take a closer look at the vaccine used to prevent HPV – a condition known to cause cervical cancer.

As we recently reported, California recently became one of the first states to do away with personal exemptions for families wishing to refrain from vaccinating their children prior to enrollment in the public school system. The decision, which sent shockwaves through the nation as an unrestrained exercise in government over-reach, was met with strenuous objections from parents wishing to wait or withhold vaccination all together. Fortunately, however, not every state has opted to take the same route, and states like Oregon and Washington recently struck down similar measures by lawmakers looking to add a similar – possibly unconstitutional – mandate to their codebooks.

Can a state require my child to get a meningitis vaccine?

Bacterial meningitis is a highly-contagious, life-threatening condition easily spread between individuals living in close quarters (like dormitories). Historically, public universities and colleges mandated this under-studied vaccine for any new enrollee, and would decline admission to any student refusing to submit to the three-part series of inoculations.

What is the AMA’s stance on opting out of routine vaccinations for newborns and children?

In June, 2015, the American Medical Association took an official stance on the notion of parents conscientiously opting out of the traditional vaccine schedule. While this is not necessarily surprising, it could trigger a ripple effect against the informed vaccination rights many advocates have worked so hard to establish – particularly if state legislatures place great weight on this group’s position.