David Strike v. HHS - Influenza, shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA) (2025)

David Strike, a retired infectious disease physician, received an influenza vaccine on August 25, 2020. He filed a petition alleging a shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA).

The core issue was whether his shoulder pain began within 48 hours of vaccination, a requirement for a Table SIRVA claim. Mr.

Strike did not seek medical treatment for his shoulder pain until over seven months after vaccination, in April 2021. At that time, he reported no unusual pain right away, with onset of pain occurring over the next several days.

He also sought care to document his condition, potentially for litigation purposes. The court found that Mr.

Strike's explanations for the delay in seeking care, including concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic and his own medical expertise, were not persuasive. Furthermore, the court noted that his statements about onset became more specific in later, less contemporaneous records, and that he had requested amendments to one of these records.

Because the record did not preponderantly support a finding that the onset of his shoulder pain occurred within 48 hours of vaccination, his Table SIRVA claim was dismissed. The court allowed him to show cause why his petition should not be dismissed entirely, particularly regarding any potential off-Table claim.