Fw: Bill about vaccine liability

[Guest guest]

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Two days ago NVIC put out a notice about SB 2053 or the Frist bill. This

bill would amend the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program in a way that would

benefit drug companies and shield them from liability. There are many

provisions to this bill but the most problematic one will stop the ability

of a vaccine injury victim to bring a lawsuit in civil court.

 

Several people called and e-mailed and felt frustrated that they had not

gotten the information in time. THERE IS STILL TIME!!! On Wednesday this

committee did not get to this bill so it is scheduled for next Wednesday,

July 31, 2002. It will go for mark-up and be voted on in that committee.

 

Whether you have a vaccine injured child or not, you need to stand up for

the right of maintaining your rights to sue in the court system. This could

be the beginning of the end for all sorts of product liability related

lawsuits.

 

NVIC worked hard to preserve the right to sue when this original law was

passed. The drug companies are worried because of the lawsuits involving

Thimerosal and autism. It makes you wonder what documents might be

discovered in a civil case that would never be uncovered in the compensation

program. Senator Frist and the drug companies are trying to blame the

current vaccine shortages on pending Thimerosal lawsuits that haven't even

gotten to court yet. Drug companies have lived liability free since 1987 and

now they are using this as an excuse to take away the rights of

vaccine-injured Americans. Senator Frist tells us in his press release

(below) that this bill will bring balance back to the Vaccine Injury

Compensation Program. NOT TRUE!! The Burton-Waxman bill, HR 3741 is a much

better bill that addresses the existing problems in the compensation

program, not problems outside the program such as pending lawsuits.

 

There are a handful of Senators who will handle this bill next week. If you

live in a state that is listed please get in touch with their office

immediately. If you don't see your state listed contact your Senator and

tell him to oppose this bill and to call Senator Frist and other committee

members and ask them to oppose it.

 

Edward Kennedy (D-MA)

senator

Christopher Dodd (D-CT)

http://dodd.senate.gov/webmail/

Tom Harkin (D-IA)

tom_harkin

Barbara Mikulski (D-MD)

http://mikulski.senate.gov/mailform.htm

James Jeffords (D-VT)

http://jeffords.senate.gov/contact-form.html

Jeff Bingaman (D-NM)

Senator_Bingaman

Paul Wellstone (D-MN)

http://wellstone.senate.gov/webform.html

Patty Murray (D-WA)

senator_murray

Jack Reed (D-RI)

http://www.senate.gov/~reed/form-opinion.htm

John Edwards (D-NC)

http://edwards.senate.gov/mailform.html

Hillary Clinton (D-NY)

http://clinton.senate.gov/email_form.html

Judd Gregg (R-NH)

http://www.senate.gov/~gregg/body_e-mail.htm

Bill Frist (R-TN)

http://www.senate.gov/~frist/Contact/contact.html

Mike Enzi (R-WY)

Senator

Tim Hutchinson (R-AR)

http://hutchinson.senate.gov/email.html

John Warner (R-VA)

http://www.senate.gov/~warner/contact/contactme.htm

Christopher Bond (R-MO)

kit_bond

Pat Roberts (R-KS)

http://www.senate.gov/~roberts/email.htm

Susan Collins (R-ME)

Senator

Jeff Sessions (R-AL)

senator

Mike DeWine (R-OH)

http://dewine.senate.gov/

 

To identify your Senators if they are not on the list:

http://www.senate.gov/contacting/index_by_state.cfm

 

To view the bill type in SB2053 once you get there:

http://thomas.loc.gov/

 

To call them: 202-224-3121

 

There is an excellent summary of the bill written by Renee Gentry of the

Vaccine Injury Alliance:

http://www.attorneyaccess.net/S2053ByTheNumbers.pdf

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FROM SENATOR FRIST

June 24, 2002

FRIST URGES ACTION TO ALLEVIATE NATION'S VACCINE SHORTAGE Cites HHS

Secretary's Advisory Commission's Recent Support for Senate Legislation

WASHINGTON, D.C. - To rally action on proposed legislation to reduce the

critical national vaccine shortage, U.S. Senator Bill Frist (R-TN) today

spoke on the Senate floor to urge congressional action to approve

legislation he introduced in March. On June 6, his proposal gained

additional momentum when the Advisory Commission for Childhood Vaccines -

which advises the Secretary of Health and Human Services on improving the

Vaccine Injury Compensation Program - voted in favor of most of the Frist

bill's provisions.

 

The following excerpts are from Senator Frist's statement on the Senate

floor:

 

" Today, many parents are being turned away with their children still

vulnerable to a range of dangerous and often deadly diseases. Five vaccines

that prevent eight childhood diseases have been in short supply in the

United States since last summer. " ...the longer this shortage continues, the

more vulnerable our children will become. If we do not take prudent steps

today to address current and recurring vaccine shortages, it is almost

certain American children will experience an outbreak of diseases that could

be prevented. " " Today, only four manufacturers produce vaccine for America's

children - just two of which are American companies. And new companies that

may want to produce vaccines are confronted with the high risk of liability

and little profit motive. " " ...one pending lawsuit seeks $30 billion in

damages while the total value of the global vaccine market is only $5

billion. This legal uncertainty has contributed to an exodus of

manufacturers from the vaccine market and a subsequent increase in vaccine

prices. In some cases, only one manufacturer is producing some of our most

critical vaccines. " " The Improved Vaccine Affordability and Availability

Act, S. 2053 would restore balance to the Vaccine Injury Compensation

Program. It would help compensate those who suffer serious side effects from

vaccines while ensuring that unwarranted litigation does not further

destabilize our vaccine supply. " " The decision before us is whether to build

on the success of vaccines in the 21st Century. And I speak not only of

vaccines that already exist and may be in short supply, but future vaccines

that will prevent HIV/AIDS or cure Alzheimer's or help the United States win

the war on terror through the development of safer vaccines to protect us,

and our children, against biological agents. "

 

Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) and Jim Bunning (R-KY) have

cosponsored Senator Frist's " Improved Vaccine Affordability and Availability

Act. " The bill would require the federal government to build and maintain a

six-month stockpile of prioritized vaccines. It also would expand the

funding available for state and local efforts to boost immunization rates

among adults and children who are underserved or at a high risk to

vaccine-preventable diseases.

 

In addition, the bill would restore balance to the Vaccine Injury

Compensation Program. This program was created in the mid 1980's to quickly

compensate those who suffer serious side effects from childhood vaccines,

while reducing the legal risk to doctors, nurses and manufacturers.

 

Frist is a member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and

a heart and lung transplant surgeon.

 

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