March 6, 2019
For Immediate Release
Contact: media@oregoniansformedicalfreedom.com
Oregonians for Medical Freedom is hosting a Vaccine Injury Awareness Day at the Oregon State Capitol this Thursday, March 7, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. A public rally for those who oppose House Bill 3063 will also take place at 11:00 a.m. on the State Capitol Park Grounds across the street from the Oregon State Capitol.
Vaccine injury and adverse reactions affect thousands of Oregon families. This Thursday’s Vaccine Injury Awareness Day is to support victims of vaccine injury and encourage them to share their personal stories with legislators. The rally and awareness day come as a response to newly proposed legislation, House Bill 3063, that would mandate up to 22 vaccines to attend school. This law would deny more than 31,500 children their right to a public education if they miss even one these shots.
Stacey Black, spokesperson for OFMF says, “Oregonians should not have to have a child injured by a vaccine before the state gives them the ability to decline a vaccine. Vaccines are safe and effective for some, but not all children and we support careful medical decisions being made between a parent and their doctor.” Black goes on to add, “A parent should never have to choose between educating their child or injecting them with a liability-free pharmaceutical product with a documented history of causing serious reactions, including permanent disability and death. We support each child’s right to a public education and each person’s right to fully informed consent for all medical procedures and practices including vaccination.”
BACKGROUND:
• In 1986 Congress agreed to indemnify vaccine manufacturers from and against civil liability for injury or death related to a vaccine
• Between January 1, 2019, and February 4, 2019, the US government has settled 167 cases and awarded nearly $66 million to vaccine injury victims
• A 2011 CDC study found that less than 1% of vaccine adverse events were ever reported
In 1986, Congress passed the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act (NCVIA), which indemnifies vaccine manufacturers from any civil liability for injury or death to a vaccine as well as from liability for failure to provide consumers with direct product warnings. The NCVIA also established the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (NVICP).
Vaccine injuries must go through the Office of Special Masters of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, also known as “vaccine court,” which administers a no-fault system for litigating vaccine injury claims. Claims against vaccine manufacturers cannot be filed in state or federal civil courts, but instead must be heard in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, without a sitting jury. To date more than four billion dollars ($4B) have been paid out for vaccine injury, death settlements and legal costs since its inception as part of NCVIA. Since January 1, 2019, the US government has settled 167 cases and awarded nearly 66 million dollars ($66M) for vaccine injury victims.
Vaccine reactions can be reported to a national reporting system called the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), which was established as part of the NVCIA to more closely monitor injury and death. VAERS is a passive reporting system that relies on the voluntarily reporting by medical professionals and patients of a vaccine reaction for injury or death. A study done in 2011 commissioned by the CDC found that less than 1% of vaccine adverse events were actually reported to VAERS. Below is a chart showing the VAERS Data reporting vaccine adverse reactions, disabilities and deaths for Oregon for the past 10 years.
VAERS data reports for Oregon in 2018 show 579 total adverse reactions reported including four deaths, 16 disabilities, four life-threatening reactions and 19 hospitalizations. Taking into account the Harvard Pilgrim Health study mentioned above, the total number of reactions could be under reported by as much as 99%.
Reported Vaccine Injuries and Deaths for Oregon (Source: https://vaers.hhs.gov/)
Oregon Vaccination rates remain high with 97% of families choosing some or all vaccines. Many of the 2.6% who remain fully unvaccinated are families with other children or loved ones with a history of vaccine injury or adverse reactions that make them more susceptible to adverse reactions and injuries from a vaccine. Under current Oregon process through the Oregon Health Authority they would not, however, be able to receive a medical exemption and currently rely on non-medical exemptions that would be removed under HB 3063.
OFMF is a grassroots organization comprised of medical professionals, educators, parents, and citizens concerned with upholding the medical ethic of informed consent for all medical procedures and practice, including vaccination. While the topic of vaccine mandates is a very sensitive and emotional issue for many, OFMF wishes to make it very clear that our organization does not and will never tolerate harassment, discrimination, or threats of violence or death towards parties who disagree with our stance, be they politicians, professionals, or citizens.
Our conduct policies are very clear: we can, have, and will continue to disavow and disassociate from anyone who may engage in behavior inconsistent with our standards of professional discourse (please visit the link to the full press release statement about OFMF conduct policy).
For more information about Oregonians for Medical Freedom, visit www.OregoniansforMedicalFreedom.com or contact info@oregoniansformedicalfreedom.com or call (503) 406-2882. For media inquiries, please email media@oregoniansformedicalfreedom.com.
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