Claims About the 1986 Vaccine Injury Act and Manufacturer Liability

So in the early 1980s in the United States, and in most parts of the world, there were only three routine vaccines, DTP, MMR, and OPV. That's it.

That's all there was. Seven total injections.

That was the sum total of our childhood schedule a- and of the adult schedule and of the pregnancy schedule, since there were no adult routine vaccines and there were no pregnancy vaccines back then.

And, and, uh, and what was, what was happening was every manufacturer of those three products either stopped making them or went out of business because of the injuries, 'cause of the financial, uh, uh, liability that was occurring from the injuries caused by those products. Now,

for any other product, when it hurts people, what does a company have to do?

Make a better, safer product. Your plane falls out of the sky, make a better plane.

Your drug hurts people, make a better drug, right?

But in this instance, Congress, in its wisdom, decided, United States Congress decided, instead of forcing them to do what every other company has to do, instead of letting the economic interest do what it does, make a better product,

instead it said, "You know what? You can keep selling your product that's harming kids. We're just gonna give you immunity so nobody can sue you."

And Congress passed the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986 that basically gave these manufacturers immunity, but not just for those three vaccines.

Gave them immunity to liability for virtually, for almost any other vaccine they made thereafter, including all childhood vaccines