UK Plans Reforms to COVID Vaccine Injury Compensation

Facts

• UK media outlet The Telegraph has reported that Health Secretary Wes Streeting has commissioned officials to develop reform options for the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS), including potential legislative changes, following concerns about the scheme's limitations and qualification threshold.^[1][2]
• The UK's current VDPS offers a one-time, tax-free payment of £120K to individuals who can prove they are at least 60% disabled due to vaccine injuries. About183 of 188 payouts have been made related to the AstraZeneca vaccine as of October 2024.^[2][3]
• Data from a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request shows 391 people injured by COVID vaccines were denied payments despite medical assessors confirming vaccine-related harm, as they did not meet the 60% disability threshold.^[2]
• The assessment system, derived from pre-Second World War industrial injuries schemes, has been criticized as archaic and better suited for quantifying physical injuries rather than complex neurological conditions.^[2]
• The government is reportedly considering establishing a bespoke scheme for vaccine-injured individuals similar to the program created for victims of the infected blood scandal.^[2]
• Of the 16.8K VDPS claims made so far, over 8K remain pending. Most rejected claims cite either insufficient proof of vaccine causation or failure to meet the disability threshold.^[4]

Sources: ^[1]GB News, ^[2]The Telegraph, ^[3]GOV.UK and ^[4]Daily Mail.

Narratives

• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by The Telegraph. The UK's forced vaccines harmed many, with 17K VDPS claims but only 188 payouts. The government's slow reaction to known risks like vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia and heart issues led to consequences. With compensation capped at £120K, the system is clearly broken. Everyone who was injured by a vaccine the government forced them to take deserves much better.
• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by BBC News. While the small number of genuinely vaccine-injured people deserve fair compensation, the overwhelming evidence shows that the UK's COVID vaccines are very safe. Besides preventing over 120K deaths and 250K hospitalizations in the UK, their side effects are predominantly mild, with severe reactions being extremely rare. The benefits of vaccination far outweigh these risks.