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SEOUL, Aug.6 (Reuters) – For the first time in South Korea, a nursing assistant paralyzed after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine has been recognized as a victim of a work-related accident, making her eligible for benefits and government compensation.
The nursing assistant, who has not been identified, was shot by AstraZeneca (AZN.L) on March 12 and subsequently suffered from double vision and paralysis and was diagnosed with acute encephalomyelitis, the Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service said on Friday. .
The service said in a statement that the woman had no underlying conditions and that there appeared to be a “reasonable causal link between the side effects and the vaccination.”
AstraZeneca, when asked about the case, did not refer to it directly, but said patient safety was of the utmost importance to her and regulators around the world.
“International regulators, including the World Health Organization, continue to reaffirm that the vaccine offers a high level of protection against all severities of COVID-19 and variants of concern, and is a key part of global efforts to defeat the virus, ”AstraZeneca said in a statement.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) had determined that with the available evidence, it could not verify a link between the woman’s case and the vaccine, but was open to reassessment when more evidence would be available, agency official Choi Seung said. -ho.
South Korea, like many other countries, has compensated major vaccine makers against the claims and put funds in place to cover all costs.
It is offering up to 10 million won ($ 8,747) to anyone who suffers from severe side effects from coronavirus vaccines, but this is the first time the side effects are considered an industrial accident.
Healthcare workers were among the first to be eligible for vaccines in South Korea and were encouraged by employers to get vaccinated, but they were not forced to.
The compensation service concluded that the woman was entitled to compensation and benefits from the government under the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Act because her medical situation was related to her work.
She will be compensated for the missed hours of work and the benefits will cover her medical expenses and disabilities, the spokesperson for the service told Reuters. There were six other cases pending a decision, the spokesperson said.
The KDCA said a total of 1,562 cases, including 14 deaths, had been reviewed for compensation for damage from COVID-19 vaccination, of which 983 had been compensated. There was no compensation for a case involving death.
LIABILITY AND CLAIMS
AstraZeneca has been granted protection against product liability claims related to its COVID-19 vaccine by most of the countries with which it has supply agreements.
After reports of a rare blood clot associated with the vaccine this year, several countries have announced restrictions on its use in young people.
In Asia, countries like Singapore, Australia, Thailand and Malaysia have financial assistance programs or set up compensation funds for those who suffer from severe side effects from vaccines.
In Thailand, the government paid 13 million baht ($ 389,454) for 400 cases of side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine, its health agency said. In the event of death, he pays 400,000 baht, and side effects which impact daily life, 240,000 baht.
The payments, however, do not prove that the vaccines have any side effects, he said, as that falls under a panel of experts.
This year, the World Health Organization agreed to a no-fault compensation plan for claims of serious side effects in people in 92 poorest countries due to obtaining COVID-19 vaccines via the COVAX sharing program. Read more
India, which has the second highest number of cases in the world, is a holdout. The government is in talks about the legal protection sought by companies like Pfizer and Moderna (MRNA.O), and no photos have been submitted by those companies. Read more
The U.S. government has a compensation fund for people who experience vaccine side effects, but lawyers say few claims have been compensated historically.
($ 1 = 33.3800 baht)
Report by Sangmi Cha; Additional reports by Panarat Thepgumpanat and Chayut Setboonsarng; Written by Josh Smith; Editing by Sayantani Ghosh, Robert Birsel
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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