{"package_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522","decision_granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522-1","petitioner_identifier":"Erin M. Kinney","is_minor":0,"age_at_vaccination":22.0,"age_unit_raw":"years","vaccine_type":"influenza; MMR","vaccination_date":"2015-10-15; 2015-10-21","condition_raw":"seizure disorder, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (“POTS”), and fibromyalgia","condition_category":"neurological","autism_spectrum_adjacent":0,"outcome":"dismissed","award_amount_usd":null,"decision_date":"2024-05-08","extraction_version":"manual-supplement-redo-2026-05-normal44","extracted_at":"2026-05-05 00:32:14","number_of_concurrent_vaccines":1,"dose_number":null,"time_to_onset_days":7,"theory_of_causation":"Influenza vaccine on October 15, 2015, and MMR vaccine on October 21, 2015, age 22, alleged to cause seizure disorder, POTS, fibromyalgia, and related symptoms beginning about one week later. DISMISSED. Petitioner Erin Kinney relied primarily on Dr. Yuval Shafrir, whose autoimmune/narcolepsy-centered theory attempted to connect multiple later diagnoses to vaccination. Respondent's Dr. M. Steven Evans disputed diagnosis and causation. Special Master Horner dismissed the petition May 8, 2024; later 2025 supplemental text concerns fees.","is_death":0,"date_of_death":null,"petition_filed_date":"2018-10-02","case_summary":"Erin M. Kinney, an adult, filed a petition alleging that she suffered a seizure disorder, POTS, and fibromyalgia following an influenza vaccine on October 15, 2015, and an MMR vaccine on October 21, 2015. She later amended her petition to include additional conditions. Ms. Kinney, who was 22 years old at the time of vaccination, reported being active in her community and working prior to her symptoms. Approximately one week after her MMR vaccine, she began experiencing fatigue, vertigo, pain, and episodes of weakness and falling. Her medical history became complex, with numerous diagnoses considered by various specialists, including narcolepsy, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and POTS. Ms. Kinney submitted medical records and expert reports, primarily from Dr. Yuval Shafrir, who opined that her conditions were autoimmune in nature and vaccine-caused, with narcolepsy being the linchpin of his theory. Respondent's expert, Dr. M. Steven Evans, disagreed with many of the diagnoses and opined that the evidence did not support vaccine causation. The court found that Ms. Kinney did not meet her burden of proof under the Althen standard. Specifically, the court determined that Dr. Shafrir's theory of causation, particularly regarding vaccine-induced narcolepsy and its extension to other conditions, was not sound and reliable. The court noted that the evidence linking the specific vaccines Ms. Kinney received to narcolepsy was weak, especially given her negative test for the HLA-DQB1*0602 allele, which is strongly associated with vaccine-related narcolepsy. Furthermore, the court found that the medical records did not establish a clear logical sequence of cause and effect linking the vaccinations to her conditions. Consequently, the petition was dismissed.","is_minor_inferred":0,"is_pediatric_broad":0,"special_master":"Daniel T. Horner","petitioner_identifier_original":null,"caption_petitioner_name":null,"petitioner_attorney_name":"Phyllis Widman","petitioner_attorney_firm":"Widman Law Firm, LLC","petitioner_attorney_location":"Northfield, NJ","adjudicator_name":null,"caption_people_backfilled_at":null,"attorney_canonical_keys":"|phyllis-widman|","firm_canonical_key":"widman-law-firm","package_title":"KINNEY v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","canonical_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522","plain_text_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522.txt","json_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522.json","source_documents":[{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522-0","title":"KINNEY v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","docket_text":"PUBLIC DECISION (Originally filed: 11/10/2022) regarding 84 DECISION of Special Master - Interim Attorney's Fees. Signed by Special Master Daniel T. Horner. (mly) Service on parties made.","date_issued":"2022-12-07","pdf_url":null,"pdf_bytes":null,"triage_decision":"skip","triage_reason":"fees-only decision (attorney compensation)","download_status":"skipped"},{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522-1","title":"KINNEY v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","docket_text":"PUBLIC DECISION (Originally filed: 5/8/2024) regarding 123 DECISION of Special Master. Signed by Special Master Daniel T. Horner. (sh). Service on parties made.","date_issued":"2024-06-04","pdf_url":"https://api.govinfo.gov/packages/USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522/granules/USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522-1/pdf","pdf_bytes":462077,"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_18-vv-01522/USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522-1"},{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522-2","title":"KINNEY v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","docket_text":"PUBLIC DECISION (Originally filed: 04/11/2025) regarding 131 DECISION of Special Master - Fees. Signed by Special Master Daniel T. Horner. (cd) Service on parties made.","date_issued":"2025-05-06","pdf_url":null,"pdf_bytes":null,"triage_decision":"skip","triage_reason":"fees-only decision (attorney compensation)","download_status":"skipped"},{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522-cl-extra-11000883","title":"Kinney v. Secretary of Health and Human Services","docket_text":"Supplementary opinion from CourtListener cluster 10534295","date_issued":"2025-05-06","pdf_url":null,"pdf_bytes":null,"triage_decision":"keep","triage_reason":"CL supplement: Kinney v. Secretary of Health and Human Services","download_status":"ok","registry_pdf_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/pdf/USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522/USCOURTS-cofc-1_18-vv-01522-cl-extra-11000883"}]}