VICP Registry Case Source Bundle Canonical URL: https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_20-vv-00991 Package ID: USCOURTS-cofc-1_20-vv-00991 Petitioner: Muhammad Jafary Filed: 2021-08-13 Decided: 2021-09-15 Vaccine: influenza Vaccination date: 2018-01-23 Condition: necrotizing myopathy Outcome: dismissed Award amount USD: AI-assisted case summary: Muhammad Jafary filed a claim alleging that he suffered necrotizing myopathy as a result of receiving an influenza vaccination on January 23, 2018. The respondent filed a Rule 4 report recommending against compensation. The petitioner later filed a motion to dismiss his petition, stating that after consulting with an expert, he decided to voluntarily withdraw his claim. The court noted that to receive compensation, the petitioner must prove either a Table Injury or that the vaccine actually caused the injury, requiring a medical theory, a logical sequence of cause and effect, and a proximate temporal relationship. Since the petitioner's medical records did not support his allegations by a preponderance of the evidence and he did not file an expert medical opinion, the Special Master granted the petitioner's motion and dismissed the petition for failure to establish a prima facie case. Theory of causation field: unclear Public staged source text: ================================================================================ DOCUMENT 1: USCOURTS-cofc-1_20-vv-00991-0 Date issued/filed: 2021-09-15 Pages: 2 Docket text: PUBLIC DECISION (Originally filed: 8/13/2021) regarding 25 DECISION of Special Master. Signed by Special Master Daniel T. Horner. (tkp) Service on parties made. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Case 1:20-vv-00991-UNJ Document 30 Filed 09/15/21 Page 1 of 2 In the United States Court of Federal Claims OFFICE OF SPECIAL MASTERS No. 20-991V Filed: August 13, 2021 UNPUBLISHED MUHAMMAD JAFARY, Special Master Horner Petitioner, v. Petitioner’s Motion for Decision Dismissing Petition; Influenza SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND (flu) vaccine; Necrotizing HUMAN SERVICES, myopathy Respondent. David J. Carney, Green & Schafle, LLC, Philadelphia, PA, for petitioner. Matthew Murphy, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC, for respondent. DECISION1 On August 7, 2020, petitioner filed a claim under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, 42 U.S.C. § 300aa-10-34 (2012), alleging that he suffered necrotizing myopathy as a result of his receipt of the influenza vaccination on January 23, 2018. (ECF No. 1.) On February 11, 2021, respondent filed his Rule 4 report, recommending against compensation. (ECF No. 16.) On June 25, 2021, I issued a non-pdf scheduling order directing petitioner to file an expert report in support of his claim. On August 12, 2021, petitioner filed a Motion for a Decision Dismissing his Petition. (ECF No. 24.) In his motion, petitioner explains that he: engaged a reputable immunology/rheumatology expert to review the medical records and medical literature to analyze the merits of the case and the causal link between the vaccines and [p]etitioner’s necrotizing myopathy. After undertaking the efforts above and in consultation with 1 Because this decision contains a reasoned explanation for the special master’s action in this case, it will be posted on the United States Court of Federal Claims’ website in accordance with the E-Government Act of 2002. See 44 U.S.C. § 3501 note (2012) (Federal Management and Promotion of Electronic Government Services). This means the decision will be available to anyone with access to the Internet. In accordance with Vaccine Rule 18(b), petitioner has 14 days to identify and move to redact medical or other information the disclosure of which would constitute an unwarranted invasion of privacy. If the special master, upon review, agrees that the identified material fits within this definition, it will be redacted from public access. Case 1:20-vv-00991-UNJ Document 30 Filed 09/15/21 Page 2 of 2 [p]etitioner, [p]etitioner has made the decision to voluntarily withdraw his [p]etition for [c]ompensation.” (Id. at 3.) To receive compensation in the Vaccine Program, petitioner must prove either (1) that he suffered a “Table Injury” – i.e., an injury falling within the Vaccine Injury Table – corresponding to a covered vaccine, or (2) that he suffered an injury that was actually caused by a covered vaccine. See §§ 13(a)(1)(A) and 11(c)(1). To satisfy his burden of proving causation in fact, petitioner must show by preponderant evidence: “(1) a medical theory causally connecting the vaccination and the injury; (2) a logical sequence of cause and effect showing that the vaccination was the reason for the injury; and (3) a showing of a proximate temporal relationship between vaccination and injury.” Althen v. Sec’y of Health & Human Servs., 418 F.3d 1274, 1278 (Fed. Cir. 2005). The Vaccine Act, 42 U.S.C. § 300aa-13(a)(1), prohibits the undersigned from ruling for petitioner based solely on his allegations unsubstantiated by medical records or medical opinion. Petitioner’s medical records do not support his allegations by a preponderance of the evidence and he did not file a medical opinion from an expert in support of his allegations. Accordingly, the undersigned GRANTS petitioner’s Motion for Decision Dismissing Petition and DISMISSES this petition for failure to establish a prima facie case of entitlement to compensation. CONCLUSION This case is now DISMISSED. The clerk of the court is directed to enter judgment in accordance with this decision.2 IT IS SO ORDERED. s/Daniel T. Horner Daniel T. Horner Special Master 2 Pursuant to Vaccine Rule 11(a), entry of judgment can be expedited by each party, either separately or jointly, filing a notice renouncing the right to seek review. 2