Janice Walker v. HHS - Influenza, shoulder injury and cellulitis affecting the arm (2024)

Janice Walker filed a petition alleging that her February 12, 2020 influenza vaccination caused injuries to her left upper extremity, including a shoulder injury and cellulitis. The central issue in this decision was determining the site of the influenza vaccination.

While the provider's vaccination record indicated the flu shot was given in the right shoulder, Walker's contemporaneous treatment records, beginning two days after vaccination, consistently stated both the flu and pneumococcal shots were administered in her left arm. The court found that Walker's treatment records, recorded soon after vaccination and in the context of diagnosis and treatment, were more persuasive than the vaccination record, which contained at least one clear error (order date) and other suspicious inconsistencies.

The court concluded, based on the preponderance of the evidence, that the influenza vaccine was administered in her left shoulder. The case outcome and award amount are not determined in this decision.