Class-Action Lawsuit Launched Against Australian Government Over COVID-19 Vaccine Injuries

Pfizer and Moderna bivalent COVID-19 vaccines at a clinic in Richmond, Va., in a Nov. 17, 2022, file image. (Steve Helber/AP Photo)

As reports of vaccine injuries gain traction globally, an Australian doctor is leading a new class-action lawsuit against the federal government and key medical figures.

Queensland Dr. Melissa McCann has filed the lawsuit in the Federal Court of Australia on behalf of 500 complainants.

The action targets the federal government, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Brendan Murphy, and John Skerritt, the public face of the Therapeutic Goods Administration—the country’s drug regulatory body.

“The action will argue that the Therapeutic Goods Administration [TGA] did not fulfil their duty to properly regulate the COVID-19 vaccines, resulting in considerable harm and damage to Australians,” Natalie Strijland from NR Barbi Solicitor said in a statement.

The lawsuit claims that the government’s actions in promoting the use of COVID-19 vaccines were “negligent or wrongful” and resulted in personal injury, medical expenses, and economic loss for the claimants.

“The claim now proceeds upon the basis that the government, in fact, acted negligently in approving the vaccines and also by failing to withdraw them after approval based upon the known evidence,” Strijland said.

“Australians who have experienced a serious adverse event following COVID-19 vaccination are invited to step forward and register for this class action.”

Liberal Sen. Gerard Rennick—a vocal critic of vaccine mandates—welcomed the action.

“Thank you to Dr. Melissa McCann and the solicitors that have taken up the fight to help those affected and still suffering,” he wrote in a statement.

“It is disappointing, to say the least, that people are not being compensated or receiving the healthcare they now need due to these experimental jabs which were, as we now know, never designed to be safe or effective.”

Vaccine Injury Payouts Ongoing

The Australian government operates a vaccine injury compensation scheme that has, thus far, paid out more than AU$7.3 million (US$4.87 million) to 137 claimants. It has received 3,501 applications and is progressing with 2,263, according to figures obtained by News.com.au.

The Department of Social Services has previously estimated the government could be liable for a payout of AU$77 million (US$49.35 million).

Lawyers assisting patients have noted the challenges with navigating the scheme.

“We’ve had just under 350 inquiries about adverse outcomes, and they have been extremely varied, but most of them have a condition that has some ongoing impact. Not many seem to fit within the criteria of the six categories,” personal injury lawyer Clare Eves previously told The Epoch Times.

In response to the lawsuit, the Australian Department of Health said: “The department is aware of a proceeding commenced today in the Federal Court of Australia by applicants represented by NR Barbi Solicitor Pty Ltd. As the matter is before the court, it is inappropriate to comment further.”

Vaccine Injuries No Longer Taboo

Since late last year, vaccine injuries have gained increasing recognition.

Previously, health authorities censured medical professionals who questioned the efficacy of the jab—part of a wider effort to encourage vaccine acceptance.

In December 2022, former member of Parliament Dr. Kerryn Phelps and her partner revealed they suffered serious injuries from a COVID-19 vaccine and suggested that the actual number of adverse events linked to the jab was far higher than what official data showed.

“In my case, the injury resulted in dysautonomia with intermittent fevers and cardiovascular implications including breathlessness, inappropriate sinus tachycardia and blood pressure fluctuations,” she wrote in a submission to Parliament.

Some medical practitioners continue to fight to be reinstated into their profession after being ousted for speaking out against the vaccine or mandates.

In August 2022, the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency suspended the registration of North Brisbane-based Dr. William Bay after he interrupted a national Australian Medical Association conference in late July 2022 and told attendees to stop forcing vaccines on people.

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