《TAIPEI TIMES》 Family to be compensated over death of daughter

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS: A committee awarded compensation to the family of a girl, even though her death could not be directly tied to the vaccination she received

By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

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Members of the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program （VICP） committee at their latest meeting agreed to provide compensation of NT$3.5 million （US$114,829） to the family of a child who died of fulminant myocarditis after receiving her second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

Ten of the 118 cases reviewed during the meeting were awarded compensation, including one case of adverse reaction after receiving a Bacillus Calmette-Guerin （BCG） vaccine and nine cases of adverse reactions after a COVID-19 vaccine.

One of the cases is a Taoyuan girl aged five to 11, who died of fulminant myocarditis after receiving her second shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

Centers for Disease Control （CDC） Deputy Director-General Philip Lo （羅一鈞）, the Central Epidemic Command Center’s （CECC） spokesperson, said the girl lost consciousness three days after receiving the shot, and a cardiac ultrasound scan showed preserved systolic function, suggesting fulminant myocarditis.

A forensic autopsy found lymphocytic infiltration within her myocardial fibers, of which viral infection is the most common cause, as the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is an mRNA vaccine that is non-pathogenic, he said.

However, Lo said that considering the sequence of events, the committee cannot rule out fulminant myocarditis being associated with the vaccine, as the risk of myocarditis after a second shot is higher than the first shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

The committee agreed to offer the girl’s family NT$3.5 million in compensation and NT$300,000 for the funeral, which is the highest compensation amount for an adverse reaction after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.

According to post-vaccination adverse reaction report data, the incidence rate of myocarditis and pericarditis after Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccination in the five-to-11 age group is 4.5 per million for boys and 4.8 for girls, which is similar to the rates in other countries.

Separately, the CECC yesterday reported 12,792 new local COVID-19 cases, 298 imported cases and 46 deaths.

The local caseload fell 18.7 percent from Sunday last week.

Lo said 98,613 new cases were reported from Feb. 19 to Saturday, down 13.9 percent from a week earlier.

Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang （王必勝）, who heads the CECC, has said the center is revising the guidelines for reporting cases and discussing when to remove the mandatory isolation rule for confirmed cases.

Asked about the issue, Lo said changes could be announced next month at the earliest.

An easing would depend on the daily caseloads after the 228 Memorial Day long weekend and the end of most mask requirements on Monday next week, he said.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES