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October 25, 2002

U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

"Smallpox Vaccine Liability Pondered"

Miami Herald (www.miami.com/herald) (10/25/02) P. A27

The Bush administration is getting ready to ask Congress to come up with a way to compensate people who are injured by the smallpox vaccine, should it be administered, saying that the issue must be resolved before the vaccine is offered.  One option is to protect those who administer the shots from lawsuits, while another would create a fund for those who develop serious medical problems.  Officials believe that the vaccine would seriously injure 15 people and kill one or two out of every million vaccinated.  The administration could also protect those who administer the vaccine by drafting them into the National Health Service Corp., which would protect them from lawsuits under the Federal Tort Claims Act; however, Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) notes that this would do nothing to protect hospitals and other facilities, and it would be difficult to accomplish for so many people.

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