{"package_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509","decision_granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509-0","petitioner_identifier":"Cynthia Lowery Grady","is_minor":1,"age_at_vaccination":4.78,"age_unit_raw":"years (born September 22, 1954; vaccinated July 1959)","vaccine_type":"oral polio vaccine","vaccination_date":"1959-07-01","condition_raw":"acute poliomyelitis and post-polio syndrome","condition_category":"other","autism_spectrum_adjacent":0,"outcome":"dismissed","award_amount_usd":null,"decision_date":"2018-03-19","extraction_version":"gemini-v2","extracted_at":"2026-04-30T00:49:26.294399+00:00","number_of_concurrent_vaccines":1,"dose_number":null,"time_to_onset_days":402,"theory_of_causation":"Petitioner Cynthia Lowery Grady received an oral polio vaccine in July 1959, at approximately 4 years and 9 months of age. She alleged this vaccine caused acute poliomyelitis in July 1960 and post-polio syndrome around 2000. The petition was filed on April 6, 2017. Special Master Mindy Michaels Roth dismissed the petition on March 19, 2018, as untimely. The Special Master determined that the claim was governed by 42 U.S.C. § 300aa-16(a)(1) because the vaccination occurred before October 1, 1988. This statute of repose required petitions to be filed by February 1, 1991. Petitioner's filing in 2017 was over 26 years late. The Special Master also found that even if the post-polio syndrome claim were analyzed under 42 U.S.C. § 300aa-16(a)(2) (for post-Act vaccines), it would still be untimely, as the alleged diagnosis around 2000 would have required a filing by approximately 2003. The Special Master ruled that equitable tolling was unavailable for pre-Act claims and that the circumstances presented (lack of knowledge of the Program, difficulty obtaining records) did not meet the extraordinary standard for tolling even under post-Act provisions. No award was made. Petitioner was represented pro se, and respondent was represented by Alexis B. Babcock, Esq.","is_death":0,"date_of_death":null,"petition_filed_date":"2017-04-06","case_summary":"On April 6, 2017, Cynthia Lowery Grady, proceeding pro se, filed a petition under the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. She alleged that an oral polio vaccine received in July 1959 caused acute poliomyelitis in 1960 and post-polio syndrome around 2000. Ms. Grady was born on September 22, 1954. She received the polio vaccine in Florida and moved to South Carolina in early 1960. Her records indicated she lived near a child who had died from polio. On July 9, 1960, Ms. Grady developed a fever and vomiting, and was diagnosed with possible polio. She was transferred to a Spartanburg hospital on July 11, 1960, with a diagnosis of acute poliomyelitis and progressed to requiring an iron lung. She was discharged on August 4, 1960, with minimal weakness in her legs and left shoulder girdle. Later medical records, dating from November 20, 2001, noted diagnoses of hemochromatosis, fibromyalgia (status post polio), bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, and bipolar disorder. Ms. Grady stated she only recently learned of the Vaccine Program and that the government failed to notify her of her ability to file a claim upon its enactment. She also described significant difficulties in obtaining her medical records from South Carolina, which she stated were unavailable for years until a hospital employee located them through microfiche. She argued these circumstances warranted equitable tolling. The respondent, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, filed a motion to dismiss, arguing the petition was untimely filed under the Vaccine Act's limitations periods. Special Master Mindy Michaels Roth issued a decision on March 19, 2018, dismissing the petition. The Special Master determined that because the polio vaccine was administered in 1959, before the Program's effective date of October 1, 1988, the claim was governed by 42 U.S.C. § 300aa-16(a)(1). This section requires that petitions for pre-Act vaccinations be filed within 28 months of October 1, 1988, meaning the deadline was February 1, 1991. Ms. Grady filed her petition on April 6, 2017, over 26 years after this deadline. The Special Master concluded that § 16(a)(1) is a statute of repose, which is not subject to equitable tolling. Furthermore, even if the post-polio syndrome diagnosis around 2000 were considered under the post-Act limitations provision, 42 U.S.C. § 300aa-16(a)(2), which allows 36 months from the onset of symptoms, the petition filed in 2017 would still be untimely, as the deadline would have been around 2003. The Special Master also addressed Ms. Grady's arguments for equitable tolling, citing precedent that a lack of knowledge of the Program and difficulty in obtaining medical records do not constitute extraordinary circumstances sufficient to toll the statute of limitations for pre-Act claims or even for post-Act claims under the limited circumstances allowed. Therefore, the petition was dismissed as untimely.","is_minor_inferred":0,"is_pediatric_broad":1,"special_master":"Mindy Michaels Roth","petitioner_identifier_original":null,"caption_petitioner_name":null,"petitioner_attorney_name":null,"petitioner_attorney_firm":null,"petitioner_attorney_location":null,"adjudicator_name":null,"caption_people_backfilled_at":null,"attorney_canonical_keys":null,"firm_canonical_key":null,"package_title":"GRADY v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","canonical_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509","plain_text_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509.txt","json_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509.json","source_documents":[{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509-0","title":"GRADY v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","docket_text":"PUBLIC DECISION (Originally filed: 3/19/2018) regarding 21 DECISION of Special Master. Signed by Special Master Mindy Michaels Roth. (fm) Service on parties made.","date_issued":"2018-04-19","pdf_url":"https://api.govinfo.gov/packages/USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509/granules/USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509-0/pdf","pdf_bytes":3149073,"triage_decision":"keep","triage_reason":"docketText matches keep keyword 'decision of special master'","download_status":"ok","registry_pdf_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/pdf/USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509/USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509-0"},{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_17-vv-00509-1","title":"GRADY v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","docket_text":"PUBLIC DECISION (Originally filed: 8/7/2018) regarding 31 DECISION of Special Master - Fees. Signed by Special Master Mindy Michaels Roth. (fm) Service on parties made.","date_issued":"2018-09-26","pdf_url":null,"pdf_bytes":null,"triage_decision":"skip","triage_reason":"fees-only decision (attorney compensation)","download_status":"skipped"}]}