Request

‘I would like information relating to people who have applied for compensation under the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS) relating to covid vaccines only.

Of those who were unsuccessful because, although the claim met the criteria for causation, the independent medical assessor recommended that the vaccine had not caused severe disablement - what was the claimant's condition or illness as recorded by the independent medical assessor?

Please provide a breakdown by condition/illness.’

Response

I can confirm that the NHSBSA holds the information you have requested.

All data as of 31 January 2025. All data relates to claims received by the NHSBSA and those transferred from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on 1 November 2021. All figures provided relate to Covid-19 claims.

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 Freedom of Information Act (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:

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

Breach of Confidentiality

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 Freedom of Information Act. Please click the below web link to see the exemption in full:

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

Question 1 - ‘I would like information relating to people who have applied for compensation under the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS) relating to covid vaccines only.

Of those who were unsuccessful because, although the claim met the criteria for causation, the independent medical assessor recommended that the vaccine had not caused severe disablement - what was the claimant's condition or illness as recorded by the independent medical assessor?

Please provide a breakdown by condition/illness.’

As of 31 January 2025, 445 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: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1982/1408/schedule/2

The list below shows specific conditions that have been identified in medical records for those where the claim was unsuccessful for this reason. Claims could be in relation to a mixture of the listed conditions and other conditions.

Submitting a claim in relation to one of the following conditions does not mean it will be rejected. This is because each claim is considered on its own merits and in accordance with the criteria of the scheme. VDPS assessments are complex. Each claim is assessed on a case-by-case basis, based upon the individual's medical records, scientific evidence, clinical research and epidemiological evidence.

Please note that due to the numbers identified for some of these assessed conditions being fewer than five, we’re unable to provide a breakdown of the conditions or the exact number for each condition under section 40(2) and section 41 of the FOIA. Details of these exemptions are outlined above.

The list of conditions is:

• Allergic reaction

• Anaphylaxis

• Bell's palsy

• Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis

• Guillain-Barre syndrome

• Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura

• Pericarditis/Myocarditis

• Pulmonary Embolus

• Tinnitus

• Transverse Myelitis

• Urticaria

• Vaccine-induced thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (VITT)

• Other – we have withheld the name of the condition where the total number of assessed conditions is fewer than five under section 40(2) and section 41 of the FOIA.

Data Queries

Please contact foirequests@nhsbsa.nhs.uk ensuring you quote the above reference if you have any specific questions regarding this response; or, if you feel you may be misunderstanding or misinterpreting the information; or, if you plan on publishing the data.

Reusing the data and copyright

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: “Dental Services, NHSBSA Copyright 2025” 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.