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A vaccine compensation plan should be established as “a matter of urgency,” a group of experts told the government.
According to the Irish Times, the group chaired by Judge Charles Meenan was created in 2018 to examine alternative systems for dealing with clinical malpractice claims stemming from the CervicalCheck scandal.
The report, which was released on Wednesday, “accepts that there is a strong moral argument that the state, which actively encourages vaccination, must take responsibility for those who suffer harm as a result.”
“There are also pragmatic reasons to support the establishment of a compensation scheme, namely to maintain vaccination acceptance rates, inspire confidence among the population, and maintain vaccine supply from manufacturers who may be concerned about liability and risks. costs, “he continued.
The report added that the urgency with which the compensation scheme should be established “has been highlighted by recent publicity and public comment on certain vaccines.”
Members of the expert group expressed differing views on what the appropriate level of compensation should be.
From the scheme of grace
According to one view, the awards awarded through a compensation plan should be in line with the awards that would be issued by a court.
A more widely held view was that awards should be below the level of an award that would be made by a court establishing liability.
The reason for this was that an ex gratia plan would relieve plaintiffs of the heavy burden of having to prove their responsibility, but at the same time they would not lose their right to take legal action.
“To be effective, the awards given by an ex gratia compensation scheme would have to be reasonable, based on proven losses,” he said.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly and Justice Minister Helen McEntee have received the report and both will return to government after further examination of the proposed recommendations.
Earlier this week, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that both ministers were working on a vaccine compensation scheme after he was questioned about the compensation offered to pharmaceutical companies developing the Covid-19 vaccine.
He said the Cabinet agreed that a compensation plan would be developed after considering the Meenan report.
More generally, the expert group said it was “strongly” of the view that the current legal system “requires urgent reform.”
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