Coronavirus - 19 victim in South Korea gets government compensation

SEOUL, Aug 6 - For the first time in South Korea, a nursing assistant who was paralysed after receiving a COVID - 19 vaccine was recognized as a victim of an industrial accident and eligible for government benefits and compensation.

The nursing assistant, who has not been identified, received the AstraZeneca shot on March 12 and later suffered from double vision and paralysis and was diagnosed with acute encephalomyelitis, the state-run Korea Workers' Compensation Welfare Service said on Friday.

The service said in a statement that the woman did not have underlying conditions and there seemed to be a reasonable causal link between the side effects and vaccination.

AstraZeneca, asked about the case, did not directly refer to it but said patient safety was of the utmost importance for it and regulators around the world.

International regulators, including the World Health Organization, continue to declare that the vaccine offers a high level of protection against all severities of COVID - 19 and variants of concern and is a key part of global efforts to overcome the virus, AstraZeneca said in a statement.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency determined that with the available evidence, it could not make a connection between the woman's case and the vaccine, but had open to re-evaluation when more evidence was available, said agency official Choi Seung-ho.

South Korea, like many other countries, has indemnized major vaccine manufacturers against claims and set up funds to cover any costs.

It offers up to 10 million won to anyone who suffers serious side effects from the coronavirus vaccines but this is the first case in which the side effects are considered an industrial accident.

Healthcare workers were among the first to be eligible for the vaccine in South Korea and were encouraged by employers to be vaccinated but not forced to do so.

The compensation service concluded that the woman was eligible to receive government compensation and benefits under the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act because her medical condition was related to her work.

She will be compensated for missed work hours and benefits will cover her medical expenses and disabilities, the service spokesman told Reuters. There were six more cases pending a decision, the spokesperson said.

The KDCA said a total of 1,562 cases, including 14 deaths, were investigated for compensation regarding damages in COVID - 19 vaccination, of which 983 had been reimbursed. There has been no compensation for a death case.

AstraZeneca has been granted protection from product liability claims related to its COVID 19 vaccine by most countries with whom it has signed supply agreements.

After reports of a rare blood clots that was associated with the vaccine this year, several countries announced restrictions on its use in younger people.

In Singapore, Australia, Thailand and Malaysia as states of Asia, countries have had financial assistance programmes or developed compensation funds for those who suffer serious side effects from vaccinations.

In Thailand, the government paid out 13 million baht to 400 cases of COVID - 19 vaccine side effects, its health agency said. The policy is in case of death, it pays 400,000 baht and side effects which impact daily life, 240,000 baht.

Payments are not proof, however, that the vaccines have side effects, it said, because that is under the purview of an expert panel.

This year the World Health Organization has agreed https: www.reuters.com article uk-health coronavirus vaccinations-compe idUSKBN 2 AN 0 GV a no-fault compensation plan for claims of serious side effects in people in 92 poorer countries due to get COVID virus via the COVAX sharing scheme.

India, which has the second highest number of cases worldwide, is a holdout https: statics.teams. cdn.office. net evergreen-assets safelinks 1 atp-safelinks.html. The government is in talks with companies like Pfizer and Moderna over legal protection, and no shots have been shipped by these companies.

The U.S. government has a compensation fund for people who are victims of side effects of a vaccine, but lawyers say few claims have been compensated https: statics.teams. cdn.office. net evergreen-assets safelinks 1 atp-safelinks.html historically.