COVID-19 Vaccination and Medical Liability: An International Perspective in 18 Countries
Flavia Beccia,
Maria Francesca Rossi,
Carlotta Amantea,
Leonardo Villani,
Alessandra Daniele,
Antonio Tumminello,
Luna Aristei,
Paolo Emilio Santoro,
Ivan Borrelli,
Walter Ricciardi,
Maria Rosaria Gualano,
Umberto Moscato
Affiliations
Flavia Beccia
Section of Hygiene, University Department of Life Sciences and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
Maria Francesca Rossi
Section of Occupational Health, Department of Woman and Child Health and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
Carlotta Amantea
Section of Occupational Health, Department of Woman and Child Health and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
Leonardo Villani
Section of Hygiene, University Department of Life Sciences and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
Alessandra Daniele
Section of Occupational Health, Department of Woman and Child Health and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
Antonio Tumminello
Section of Occupational Health, Department of Woman and Child Health and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
Luna Aristei
Department of Law, LUISS Guido Carli University, 00198 Rome, Italy
Paolo Emilio Santoro
Department of Woman and Child Health and Public Health, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Largo Francesco Vito 1, 00168 Rome, Italy
Ivan Borrelli
Department of Health Science and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Largo Francesco Vito 1, 00168 Rome, Italy
Walter Ricciardi
Section of Hygiene, University Department of Life Sciences and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
Maria Rosaria Gualano
Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy
Umberto Moscato
Section of Occupational Health, Department of Woman and Child Health and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
The COVID-19 vaccination has proven to be the most effective prevention measure, reducing deaths and hospitalizations and allowing, in combination with non-pharmacological interventions, the pandemic to be tackled. Although most of the adverse reactions to vaccination present mild symptoms and serious effects are very rare, they can be the cause of legal action against the healthcare workers (HCWs) who administered it. To highlight differences in the medical liability systems, we performed a search for the three most populous countries in each continent on vaccine injury compensation programs, new laws or policies to protect HCWs administering vaccinations introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic, and policies on mandatory vaccinations, on literature databases and institutional sites. We found that in seven countries the medical liability system is based on Common Law, while in eleven it is mainly based on Civil Law. Considering the application of specific laws to protect HCWs who vaccinate during the pandemic, only the USA and Canada provided immunity from liability. Among the countries we analyzed, fourteen have adopted compensation funds. From an international perspective, our results highlight that in eleven (61.1%) countries medical liability is mainly based on Civil Law, whilst in seven (38.9%) it is based on Common Law.
