Request

1) Of the 163 awards made from the VDPS regarding a Covid 19 vaccine (as of 14th Feb 2024), how many have waited over 12 months, 18 months and 24 months for a decision?

2) Of the 303 claims (as of 14th Feb 2024) following a Covid 19 vaccine that were unsuccessful even though the claim met the criteria for causation but did not meet the 60 % threshold, how many have waited over 12 months, 18 months and 24 months for an outcome?

3) What is the average processing time of all claims following a Covid 19 vaccine that have received an outcome as of 14th Feb 2024?

Response

All data as of 14 February 2024. All data relates to claims received by the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) and those transferred from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on 1 November 2021. All figures provided relate to COVID-19 vaccines.

Question 1

103 claims were awarded more than 12 months after they were received. Of these 103 claims, 37 claims were awarded more than 18 months after they were received. Of these 37 claims, eight claims were awarded more than 24 months after they were received. As part of the process of the scheme, we need a full set of medical records for each claimant, and it can take time for the claimant’s healthcare providers to gather and securely supply copies of these records. Once sent for assessment, the time it takes for the independent medical assessor to review a claim can vary from case to case depending on the individual circumstances of each claim. Question 2

170 claims were rejected more than 12 months after they were received. Of these 170 claims, 74 claims were rejected more than 18 months after they were received. Of these 74 claims, 17 claims were rejected more than 24 months after they were received. As part of the process of the scheme, we need a full set of medical records for each claimant, and it can take time for the claimant’s healthcare providers to gather and securely supply copies of these records. Once sent for assessment, the time it takes for the independent medical assessor to review a claim can vary from case to case depending on the individual circumstances of each claim. Question 3

As of 14 February 2024, the average number of days it took from receiving a claim to communicating an outcome was 295 days.

The time it takes for each claim to reach a conclusion can vary from case to case depending on the individual circumstances of each claim and can be affected by a number of factors. For example, the length of time it takes to receive full medical records for the claimant from their healthcare providers.

Please note that this request and our response is published on our Freedom of Information disclosure log at:

https://opendata.nhsbsa.net/dataset/foi-01803