Larry J. Parker v. HHS - Pneumococcal, Guillain-Barré Syndrome (2025)

Larry J. Parker, a 69-year-old man, filed a petition alleging that he suffered Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) as a result of a Prevnar 13 vaccination he received on April 4, 2017.

Respondent argued against compensation, recommending denial. The parties stipulated that Petitioner was 69 years old at the time of vaccination, that the vaccine was administered in the United States, and that his diagnosis of GBS was appropriate.

However, they disputed causation. Petitioner did not allege a Table injury and therefore had to prove causation-in-fact under the Althen criteria.

Petitioner presented expert testimony from Dr. James L.

Frey and Dr. M.

Eric Gershwin, who opined that the Prevnar 13 vaccine caused Petitioner's GBS through the mechanism of molecular mimicry. They argued that components of the vaccine, specifically phosphoglycerol in serotypes 18C and 23F, could cross-react with phospholipids in the myelin sheath of peripheral nerves.

Respondent presented expert testimony from Dr. Brian C.

Callaghan and Dr. You-Wen He, who argued that there was no convincing evidence that Prevnar 13 can cause GBS and that the molecular mimicry theory was not sufficiently established.

The court found that Petitioner provided preponderant evidence of a sound and reliable theory of causation through molecular mimicry, satisfying the first Althen prong. The court also found that Petitioner's clinical course was consistent with GBS following vaccination, with no identified alternative cause, satisfying the second Althen prong.

Finally, the court found that the onset of Petitioner's symptoms approximately nine days after vaccination was a medically acceptable temporal relationship, satisfying the third Althen prong. Accordingly, the court ruled that Petitioner was entitled to compensation, with a separate damages order to follow.

The damages proffer later resolved the award. In a decision filed March 12, 2025, Special Master Dorsey awarded Mr.

Parker $149,088.72, consisting of $123,214.00 for pain and suffering, $7,921.89 in unreimbursable expenses, and $17,952.83 in lost wages.