UK faces rising claims for COVID-19 vaccine damages; over 14,000 seek compensation

Around 14,000 people in the United Kingdom have applied for government compensation, claiming they were harmed by COVID-19 vaccines, according to a recent report byThe Telegraph.

The report highlights that some people have already received payments for serious conditions like strokes, heart attacks, dangerous blood clots, inflammation of the spinal cord, severe swelling in the vaccinated arm, and even facial paralysis.

AstraZeneca is said to be behind 97 per centof all the approved claims, with only a few related to Pfizer or Moderna.

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The Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS), initiated in 1979, has received a total of 16,000 applications over the years, and the majority of recent claims are related to COVID-19 vaccines. Many have been denied payments because they weren’t considered “disabled enough.”

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For those who are successful, there’s a one-time payment of £120,000 ($155,321). However, the government has only approved payments in 175 cases so far, which is less than two per centof the total applications, according to The Telegraph.

Over 5,500 claims have been reportedly rejected, and another 519 were dismissed before even reaching a medical assessment. Out of nearly 1,000 people who asked for their cases to be reconsidered, only 12 have had their decisions reversed and received a payment.

Around 350 claims were denied because, while the vaccine was recognised as harmful, it was determined that the harm didn’t cause “severe disablement.” To qualify, applicants need to be at least 60 per cent disabled. More than 700 people have been waiting over a year for a decision.

Despite warnings and increasing reports of blood clots, the UK government continued to recommend the AstraZeneca vaccine, even as other countries like Germany, Italy, France, and Spain stopped using it by March 2021.

Last year, AstraZeneca admitted that its vaccine could cause VITT in some cases, and in May, it started pulling the vaccine worldwide, saying that newer vaccines were better at targeting COVID-19variants.

However, AstraZeneca was given legal protection early in the pandemic, so even if someone won a civil case, it would be UK taxpayers who foot the bill for compensation.

(With inputs from agencies)