Government can introduce alternate cause of death in Vaccine Act case, rules Federal Circuit

The Daily Record Newswire The government is not precluded from introducing evidence that a child's death following a hepatitis B vaccination was due to sudden infant death syndrome, the Federal Circuit has ruled. A seven and one-half week old baby received her second vaccination for hepatitis B. Approximately six hours later the father found the baby blue in the face and not breathing. She died soon after. Her death certificate listed SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) as her cause of death. Her parents filed suit under the Vaccine Act, but their claim was denied. They appealed, arguing that the special master committed error by considering evidence of a possible alternative cause of death - SIDS - in deciding whether or not the vaccine caused their daughter's death. But the court disagreed. "[The Vaccine Act] does not prohibit the government from presenting evidence of alternative causes. Instead, like any defendant, [the government] is permitted to offer evidence to demonstrate the inadequacy of the petitioner's evidence on a requisite element of the petitioner's case-in-chief.' ... "Allowing the special master to consider evidence of SIDS did not improperly shift the burden to [the parents] to rule out alternative causes. Evidence of SIDS was just one factor among many that the special master relied on in concluding that 'the facts of the case' did not support [the parents'] theory of causation, and thus failed to establish a prima facie case," the court said. U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit. Doe v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, No. 2009-5096. April 13, 2010. Lawyers USA No. 993-1795. Published: Mon, Apr 26, 2010

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