Mary Finch v. HHS - Influenza, shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (2020)

Mary Finch filed a petition alleging that she developed a shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA) after receiving an influenza vaccine on November 14, 2017. The petition was filed on October 31, 2018.

After investigating the facts and science, Ms. Finch concluded that she would be unable to prove entitlement to compensation.

She filed a motion to dismiss her own petition, understanding that this would result in a judgment against her. The court noted that to receive compensation, a petitioner must prove either a Table injury or that the injury was caused-in-fact by the vaccine.

The decision explained that SIRVA is listed on the Vaccine Injury Table only for intramuscular injections, and Ms. Finch received an intradermal vaccination.

Therefore, she was limited to proving causation-in-fact. The court found that the record lacked persuasive evidence that her injury was caused by the vaccine.

Furthermore, the Vaccine Program requires supporting evidence beyond the petitioner's claims, such as medical records or expert opinions, which were insufficient in this case. Consequently, the Special Master granted Ms.

Finch's motion and dismissed the petition for insufficient proof.