The WHO had agreed a “no-fault” compensation fund for serious COVAX vaccine side effects.
The World Health Organization (WHO) had agreed a “no-fault” compensation fund for serious COVAX vaccine side effects in people in poorer countries.
The World Health Organization had agreed a “no-fault compensation plan” for claims of serious side effects in people in 92 poorer countries due to get COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX sharing scheme, resolving a big concern among recipient governments.
In a statement, the World Health Organization said that the program — which the WHO said was the “first and only vaccine injury compensation mechanism” operating on an international scale — would offer eligible people a “fast, fair, robust, and transparent” process.
“By providing a no-fault lump-sum compensation in full and final settlement of any claims, the COVAX program aims to significantly reduce the need for recourse to the law courts, a potentially lengthy and costly process,” the statement said.
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Questions of how compensation claims will be handled in the event of any serious COVID-19 vaccine side effects, which were likely to be very rare, had been a worry for countries due to get COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX plan.
Countries funding their own vaccine procurement also planned their own liability programs.
The WHO-agreed plan, which had been under discussion for several months, was designed to cover serious side effects linked to any COVAX-distributed COVID-19 vaccines until June 30, 2022, to COVAX’s Advance Market Commitment-eligible economies — a group of 92 poorer countries which include most African and Southeast Asian countries.
According to the World Health Organization, the program would be financed initially from donor funding to the AMC as an extra charge on all COVID-19 vaccine doses distributed through COVAX Facility, adding that applications can be made via a portal from March 31, 2021.
Seth Berkley, the chief executive of the GAVI vaccine alliance which co-lead COVAX, said that the agreement on the compensation fund was “a massive boost” for COVAX as it helped those in countries who might have such effects, manufacturers to release COVID-19 vaccines to countries faster, and was a “key benefit” for lower-income governments procuring COVID-19 vaccines through COVAX.
The World Health Organization said that it was also working with the insurance firm Chubb in order to secure insurance coverage for the said program.
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