Olivia Jeffers v. HHS - Influenza, transverse myelitis (2018)

On May 3, 2017, Olivia Jeffers filed a petition on behalf of her minor son, X.J., seeking compensation under the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. The petition alleged that X.J. developed transverse myelitis after receiving an influenza vaccine on November 13, 2015.

The respondent denied that the vaccine caused the alleged injury. The parties reached a joint stipulation to settle the case, which was filed on August 16, 2018.

Special Master Mindy Michaels Roth adopted the stipulation in a decision dated August 24, 2018. The settlement included a lump sum of $63,497.39 to reimburse a lien for services rendered by Optum Subrogation Services, a $500.00 lump sum for past unreimbursed expenses, and an amount sufficient to purchase an annuity contract for future payments.

The annuity contract was to provide four guaranteed lump sum payments to X.J. between August 27, 2020, and August 27, 2023, with amounts ranging from $31,087.00 to $34,464.00. The total compensation awarded was the sum of these payments.

Subsequently, on October 10, 2018, Petitioner filed an application for attorneys' fees and costs. In a decision dated December 3, 2018, Special Master Mindy Michaels Roth awarded $16,609.00 in attorneys' fees and $2,007.85 in costs, for a total of $18,616.85, payable jointly to the petitioner and her counsel, Nancy Myers, Esq.

The case was settled as a Table claim, as transverse myelitis is listed on the Vaccine Injury Table for the influenza vaccine. The public decision does not describe the onset, specific symptoms, diagnostic tests, treatments, or the medical expert opinions related to X.J.'s condition.