“Chamber of Deputies of Chile Approve Resolution for Covid-19 Vaccine Compensation Fund: Lessons from Argentina and Canada”

The Chamber of Deputies and Deputies of Chile approved resolution 377by which the executive is requested to create a compensation fund for all people who have suffered harmful side effects to health, as a result of vaccination against Covid-19.

The text indicates that, despite the fact that it has not been publicly disclosed, “there are cases of people who, after their vaccination, have presented unwanted side effects or other cases in which they could be linked to their causes of death. Risks that have also been reported by the Undersecretary of Public Health through Resolutions number 291, 437 y 442, all from March 10, 2022″. The resolution continues indicating that “the symptoms that these people present sometimes lack accurate medical diagnoses, so they cannot be properly treated.” “But in addition, these people, lacking a timely, adequate or precise diagnosis, are unable to obtain coverage in their respective health systems, nor are they compensated or reimbursed for the expenses incurred; which also entails, for these people and their families, an emotional and economic cost, far from being able to be paid for by the vast majority of people, this being the equivalent of what happens with catastrophic illnesses”.

Underline the resolution “It is an unavoidable duty of the State to support and provide a solution to the population that is affected by vaccines, meanwhile, the safety and effectiveness of these are his responsibility since he is the one who provides them exclusively to the population. Likewise, calling on people to get vaccinated with the certainty that it is the only efficient and effective solution.

Reference is made to article 38 of the Fundamental Charter, which includes the principle of responsibility of the Administration, in such a way that it is recognized that “any person whose rights are violated by the State Administration, its agencies or the municipalities, may claim before the courts determined by law, without prejudice to the liability that could affect the official who caused the damage.

The fund, they point out in the resolution, “is an instrument that is used in various countries and was also established within the framework of the COVAX Mechanism, as has also been the case with the measure taken in Argentina and Canada in our region.”

Argentina enabled a compensation mechanism in 2022

Through a joint resolution between the Ministry of Health and the Superintendent of Occupational Risks, the requirements and steps that must be taken in Argentina to request compensation for damages caused by Covid-19 Vaccines were established. The Joint Resolution 7/2022 regulates this compensation fund.

The compensation comes from the Covid-19 Reparation Fund, created by decree and destined to compensate those people who, eventually, have suffered damage to their physical health as a direct consequence of the Covid-19 vaccine. “This fund is an instrument that is used in various countries and was also established in the framework of the COVAX Mechanism“, they pointed out from the Argentine executive.

The application authority is the Ministry of Health, while the Superintendence, through the Medical Commissions, will have to process the claims.

Canada has the VISP: Vaccine Injury Support Program

The purpose of this program is to “ensure that all persons in Canada who have suffered a serious and permanent injury as a result of receiving a vaccine licensed by Health Canada, administered in Canada as of December 8, 2020, have fair and timely access to financial resources and support. You can check all the details of this program by clicking here.