Why India should establish a vaccine injury compensation mechanism, PgII

Key Highlights:

• The Supreme Court has directed the Union government to create a no-fault compensation policy for serious adverse events following COVID-19 vaccination in the Rachana Gangu v. Union of India (2026) case.
• India administered over 219.86 crore vaccine doses by late 2022, making vaccination a social contract.
• The government recorded 92,114 Adverse Events Following Immunisation (AEFI) cases, including 1,171 deaths.
• A Vaccine Injury Compensation Act is needed to provide defined rights and independent oversight.

Detailed Insights:

• Vaccines are crucial for public health, but serious adverse events, though rare, do occur, necessitating a compensation mechanism.
• The Constitution obligates the State to protect public health under Article 21, implying a duty to remedy harm caused by mandatory health interventions.
• Existing legal remedies like tort law and the Consumer Protection Act 2019 are inadequate for vaccine injury cases due to difficulties in proving fault or establishing a consumer relationship.
• Other countries like the U.S., U.K., Japan, and Taiwan have implemented no-fault vaccine injury compensation models.
• India needs a Vaccine Injury Compensation Act with a presumptive causation table, an independent administrative tribunal, a dedicated compensation fund, and transparent AEFI reporting.
• A robust compensation system can build trust and increase vaccination uptake.
• The compensation fund could be shared between the Central government and vaccine manufacturers through a levy system.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Adverse Events Following Immunisation (AEFI): Unfavorable medical occurrences following vaccination, which may or may not be causally related to the vaccine.
• No-fault compensation: A system where individuals can receive compensation for vaccine-related injuries without proving negligence or fault.
• Doctrine of legitimate expectation: The principle that citizens who comply with state directives have a right to expect not to be abandoned if compliance causes injury.