Thank you for your request for information about the following:

Under the FOI Act (2000), please provide the following information with respect to suspected COVID-19 vaccine injuries/bereavements in Northern Ireland only.

How many people have applied for payment from the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS)?

How many claimants have been successfully awarded payment?

How many claimants have been refused payment? Provide an exact numeric breakdown for the refusal reasons - e.g., how many people have been refused due to having less than 60% disability, or insufficient evidence for a causal link to a COVID-19 vaccine, etc.

How many claims are still being processed, i.e., still pending a decision, neither having been successfully awarded or refused?

Furthermore, please supply the exact list of criteria to qualify for payment under the VDPS. Please also supply an example of how a VDPS application form should be completed.

Your request was received on 5 April 2024, and I am dealing with it under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000.

Response

All data is as of 9 April 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. 

Fewer than five

Please be aware that I have decided not to release the full details where the total number of individuals falls below five. This is because the individuals could be identified, when combined with other information that may be in the public domain or reasonably available. This information falls under the exemption in section 40 subsections 2 and 3 (a) of the FOIA. This is because it would breach the first data protection principle as:  

a - it is not fair to disclose individual’s personal details to the world and is likely to cause damage or distress.

b - these details are not of sufficient interest to the public to warrant an intrusion into the privacy of the individual.  

Please click the below web link to see the exemption in full.   

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/36/section/40    

Please note that the identification of individuals is also a breach of the common law duty of confidence. An individual who has been identified could make a claim against the NHSBSA for the disclosure of the confidential information.  

The information requested is therefore being withheld as it falls under the exemption in section 41(1) ‘Information provided in confidence’ of the FOIA.  

Please click the below web link to see the exemption in full:

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/36/section/41

Question 1

Based on the claimant's address at the time we received the claim, 213 claims from a Northern Ireland address have been received by the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme.

Question 2

Fewer than five claimants have been notified that they are entitled to a Vaccine Damage Payment. Therefore, as detailed above in accordance with section 40 (2) and section 41 of FOIA we are unable to provide a figure.

Question 3

70 claims have been unsuccessful. Claims which were submitted but which did not meet the criteria of the scheme have not been included in these figures. For example, claims regarding vaccines administered outside the UK.

61 claims were unsuccessful because the independent medical assessor recommended that, on the balance of probabilities, the vaccine did not cause the disability in question (causation).

Nine claims were unsuccessful because, although the claims met the criteria for causation, the independent medical assessor recommended that the vaccine has not caused severe disablement. Under the VDPS, severe disablement means at least 60% disabled, based on Schedule 2 of The Social Security (General Benefit) Regulations 1982. Those regulations can be found at the below web link:

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1982/1408/schedule/2

Question 4

131 claims have not yet reached an outcome.

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.

All claims are medically assessed by an independent, experienced medical assessor. Claims are assessed on a case-by-case basis, according to the criteria for the scheme. 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 individual circumstances.

Question 5

Information of the eligibility criteria to receive a Vaccine Damage Payment is available at www.gov.uk/vaccine-damage-payment/eligibility

Question 6

I must advise you that following a search of our paper and electronic records; I have established that an example of how a claim form for a Vaccine Damage Payment should be completed, is not held by the NHSBSA.

Data Queries

If you have any queries regarding the data provided, or if you plan on publishing the data please contact foirequests@nhsbsa.nhs.uk ensuring you quote the above reference. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.

If you plan on producing a press or broadcast story based upon the data, please contact communicationsteam@nhsbsa.nhs.uk This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 and is subject to NHSBSA copyright. This information is licenced under the terms of the Open Government Licence detailed at:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Should you wish to re-use the information you must include the following statement:

“NHSBSA Copyright 2024” This information is licenced under the terms of the Open Government Licence:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Failure to do so is a breach of the terms of the licence.

Information you receive which is not subject to NHSBSA Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. Please obtain their permission before reproducing any third party (non NHSBSA Copyright) information.