Katherine Shoemaker v. HHS - Influenza, shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA) (2022)

Katherine Shoemaker filed a petition alleging she suffered a shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA) after receiving an influenza vaccine on September 24, 2018. She claimed the onset of symptoms was immediate and caused difficulty with daily activities for over six months.

However, the medical records showed she did not seek treatment for her shoulder pain until July 15, 2019, nearly ten months after vaccination. The vaccine record also did not initially specify the arm of administration.

Despite multiple orders and opportunities to provide further documentation and explanation for the delay, Ms. Shoemaker failed to submit sufficient evidence.

The Special Master noted that contemporaneous medical records are given more weight and that her delayed reporting suggested the claim could not succeed. Ultimately, the Special Master dismissed the petition for failure to provide preponderant evidence of a vaccine-related injury.

The Court of Federal Claims reviewed the Special Master's decision and found no clear error, sustaining the dismissal.