Bennett C. Meltzer v. HHS - Influenza, sciatica (2023)

Bennett C. Meltzer filed a petition alleging that the influenza and Pneumococcal Polysaccharide 23-valent vaccines he received on December 18, 2019, caused his sciatica.

The court noted that the Pneumococcal vaccine was not covered by the program. Mr.

Meltzer, acting pro se, struggled to find legal representation throughout the proceedings. Medical records, including MRIs from 2015 and 2019 (8 days post-vaccination), showed pre-existing structural changes in his lumbar spine, such as disc bulging and neural foraminal narrowing, consistent with sciatica.

The court explained that it would be difficult to prove that these structural changes occurred as a result of the vaccine, especially given the pre-existing conditions. The petitioner understood the difficulty of prevailing and agreed to voluntarily dismiss his claim.

The petition was dismissed for insufficient proof, as no medical records or competent physician's opinion linked the flu vaccine to his sciatica, and the evidence pointed to a common structural explanation for his pain.