The federal Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, better known as "vaccine court," has just awarded millions of dollars to two children with autism for "pain and suffering" and lifelong care of their injuries, which together could cost tens of millions of dollars. The government did not admit that vaccines caused autism, at least in one of the children. Both cases were "unpublished," meaning information is limited, and access to medical records and other exhibits is blocked. Much of the information presented here comes from documents found at the vaccine court website. Some observers will say the vaccine-induced encephalopathy (brain disease) documented in both children is unrelated to their autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Others will say there is plenty of evidence to suggest otherwise. What's more, these cases fit the pattern of other petitions, (i.e., Poling and Banks) in which the court ruled (or the government conceded) that vaccines had caused encephalopathy, which in turn produced permanent injury, including symptoms of autism and ultimately an ASD diagnosis. And most of these children now have taxpayer dollars earmarked for applied behavioral analysis (ABA), an effective therapy specifically designed to treat ASD.
Meanwhile, parents, grandparents, friends and neighbors of both children testified they were developmentally normal, if not advanced for their age when they developed seizures, spiking fevers and other adverse reactions to their vaccines. According to these eyewitnesses, the children never fully recovered, and instead began losing vocabulary, eye contact and interest in others around them, all classic symptoms of regressive autism. In the first case, involving a 10-year-old boy from Northern California named Ryan Mojabi, the parents allege that "all the vaccinations" received from 2003-2005, and "more specifically, measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccinations," caused a "severe and debilitating injury to his brain, described as Autism Spectrum Disorder ('ASD')." The parents, who did not want to be interviewed, specifically asserted that Ryan "suffered a Vaccine Table Injury, namely, an encephalopathy" as a result of his MMR vaccination on December 19, 2003." ("Table injuries" are known, compensable adverse reactions to immunizations.)
Alternatively, they claim that "as a cumulative result of his receipt of
each and every vaccination between March 25, 2003 and February 22, 2005,
Ryan has suffered . . . neuroimmunologically mediated dysfunctions in the
form of asthma and ASD." In vaccine court, the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services acts as the defendant and Justice Department attorneys act as
counsel. In 2009, Ryan's case was transferred to vaccine court's Autism
Omnibus Proceedings, according to the docket. A year-and-a-half later, the
government conceded that MMR vaccine had indeed caused Ryan's
encephalopathy. HHS agreed that "Ryan suffered a Table injury under the
Vaccine Act -- namely, an encephalitis within five to fifteen days following
receipt," of MMR, records show. "This case is appropriate for
compensation." Whether HHS agreed with Ryan's parents that his
vaccine-induced brain disease led to ASD is unknown. The concession document
is under seal.
Vaccine Exemption Forms
