Gina Singh v. HHS - Tdap, shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA) (2025)

Gina Singh filed a petition alleging that she suffered a shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA) as a result of a Tdap vaccine she received on November 1, 2018. She claimed the injury manifested within hours of the vaccination and caused residual effects for more than six months.

The respondent, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, moved to dismiss the case, arguing that Ms. Singh failed to establish the severity requirement of the Vaccine Act, specifically that her injury resulted in residual effects for more than six months or required inpatient hospitalization and surgical intervention.

The medical records showed Ms. Singh sought treatment eight days after vaccination for right shoulder pain and limited range of motion, diagnosed as cellulitis.

However, there were significant gaps in her treatment over the following eight months, with subsequent imaging revealing osteoarthritis and rotator cuff tears. Ms.

Singh submitted declarations claiming she performed home exercises and experienced pain for nearly a year, but the court found these contentions were not corroborated by contemporaneous medical records, which indicated she had not been doing exercises and had not sought consistent treatment. The court noted that a rotator cuff tear is not a typical SIRVA sequela and that the lack of consistent treatment and the lengthy gaps made it impossible to find that the severity requirement was met by a preponderance of the evidence.

Consequently, the court dismissed Ms. Singh's petition for failure to establish entitlement.