Families of people who died after taking Covid vaccine ‘ignored’ as zero compensation payouts made

Families with loved ones who died or suffered severe side effects after receiving the Covid vaccine say they are being “ignored”.

More than 1,200 claims have been made to the Vaccines Damages Payment Scheme (VDPS), which entitles successful applicants to up to £120,000 if a causal link between vaccination and severe reaction, culminating in injury or death, is proven.

But to date, the government is yet to pay out any form of compensation for affected individuals.

Some applicants have been waiting nearly a year, despite families having medical certificates confirming that vaccination was responsible for the death of their loved ones.

The government says that the average claim to the VDPS should take “around six months” to investigate and process.

Sarah Moore, a lawyer who represents 95 families seeking claims, said her clients felt “silenced and ignored,” adding that they cannot speak about vaccine-linked injuries as to do so risks accusations of being anti-vax.

“For this reason they cannot even grieve in the normal way,” she told The Independent.

Vikki Spit, whose partner Zion died at the age of 48 following a rare but severe reaction to the AstraZeneca vaccine, said she and other affected families waiting for support had been “ignored entirely”, ridiculed and called liars.

Ms Spit said she had been accused of jumping on the anti-vax campaign but insisted: “Zion did the right thing and now he and the others are being swept under the rug, not discussed.”

The Covid vaccines have been proven to be extremely safe and effective, saving hundreds of thousands of lives, but as with any medicine used by millions of people, rare side effects are to be expected.

These can range from the extremely rare blood clots detected in some recipients of the AstraZeneca jab – a link that has been acknowledged by Britain’s medicines regulator – to other conditions, such as myocarditis, or heart inflammation, triggered by the Pfizer vaccine.

Of the tens of millions of people vaccinated against Covid in the UK, 79 have died as a result of the rare blood clotting disorder triggered by the AstraZeneca jab, which is no longer being rolled out in Britain.

A total of 440 people have been affected by blood clotting linked to the vaccine, according to the UK’s medicines regulator.

Ms Moore said it was vital the government financially supports the small minority of people who, in exceptional circumstances, have been harmed by vaccination or even died.

“The government’s Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme was created to acknowledge the losses suffered by families affected and provide some financial support,” she said.

“Yet, a year on from their initial applications, none of the families with whom we are working have received any VDPS payments.

“Instead, they remain embattled with the VDPS, whilst also coming to terms with grief and in some cases new caring responsibilities.”

The government has acknowledged that there is “increasing” scientific evidence “that supports an association between the Covid vaccines and some extremely rare and limited adverse effects”.

As a result of this evidence, officials are “now in a position to begin progressing existing” claims, according to a letter sent by NHS Business Service Authority to a claimant on 15 February 2022.

Xural.com