Congress Chooses Protection Over Accountability for Vaccine Makers

In 1986, Congress fundamentally altered the landscape of vaccine production and litigation in the United States.

Aaron Siri explains that the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act was passed “instead of forcing those manufacturers to do what every other product manufacturer has to do when their product causes more harm than it does good.”

This legislation granted vaccine makers unprecedented protection. Siri noted that he’s “not aware of any product, none that enjoys the level of immunity to having to pay for injuries that vaccines enjoy.”

The Act emerged as a crucial response to a potential crisis. Manufacturers were considering halting vaccine production due to the financial risks of mounting liability lawsuits.

Siri points out that typically, “the primary thing that drives product safety are market forces,” yet this Act effectively removed these forces from vaccine production.