Someone from the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program spoke at the ACIP meeting today

This was in response to a query from ACIP’s consumer member, Ms. McNally. This federal employee’s prepared statement included the claim that prompt adjudication of claims was extremely important to the CICP, a subagency within HRSA, an agency within DHHS. However, 95% of COVID-related claims have yet to be adjudicated.

So I thought I would check the CICP website, because it seemed to me that NO claims had been paid out for any COVID vaccine or other related injuries. I was correct.

Last year, the program had paid out a total of 29 claims in its 12 years of existence. None for COVID-related claims. This year, they have paid out one more claim. However, it looks like no one has been paid for a COVID-related injury yet.

It appears that 19 cases related to a COVID countermeasure (of 1,048 adjudicated by DHHS) were determined to be eligible for a payment. Two percent made the eligibility cut. Over 10,000 applications have yet to be reviewed. However, this program only pays for costs that are not covered by health, disability or similar insurance, and the maximum payout currently is about $400,000 for a 100% permanent disability. The result is that if you have other insurance, you will often collect nothing despite being ‘eligible’ for benefits.

I believe some of the 19 eligibles had anaphylaxis—a reaction usually suffered while still in the vaccine clinic—which is hard to attribute to anything else. If you apply more than a year after you were vaccinated or given another ‘countermeasure,’ you will have missed the deadline and your claim will not be processed.

Below are the data straight from the CICP website:

CICP Data for Fiscal Years 2010 – 2023 (As of February 1, 2023)

Total CICP Claims Filed: 11,708

• Pending Review or In Review: 10,660

• Decisions: 1,048

  • Claims Found Eligible for Compensation: 59

    • Claims Compensated: 30

    • Claims Pending Benefits Determination: 19

    • Claims with No Eligible Reported Expenses: 10

  • Denied: 989

    • Requested Medical Records Not Submitted: 179

    • Standard of Proof Not Met and/or Covered Injury Not Sustained: 311

    • Missed Filing Deadline: 179

    • Not CICP Covered Product/Not Specified: 320

Has the CICP Made Any Decisions Regarding COVID-19 Claims?

As of February 1, 2023, the CICP has rendered decisions on 543 COVID-19 claims. 

CICP Data for COVID-19 Claims (As of February 1, 2023)

Total COVID-19 CICP Claims Filed: 11,196

• Pending Review or In Review: 10,653

• Decisions: 543

  • Eligible for Compensation and Pending Benefits Determination: 19

  • Denied: 524

    • Requested Medical Records Not Submitted: 44

    • Standard of Proof Not Met and/or Covered Injury Not Sustained: 88

    • Missed Filing Deadline:141

    • Not CICP Covered Product/Not Specified: 251