The Department of Health and Human Services paid $150,000 to an Arizona law firm for its expertise on the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program — an indication that the department could be readying changes to the VICP, which HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has criticized in the past.
The award made last month went to the firm Brueckner Spitler Shelts without specifying an individual recipient. But one lawyer at the firm, Andrew “Drew” Downing, is known nationally for his work litigating claims of vaccine injuries. Downing has also been involved in lawsuits against vaccine manufacturers claiming they downplayed the risks of severe side effects.
He has a track record of making both valid criticisms of the program’s shortcomings as well as dubious claims about the safety and efficacy of the Gardasil HPV vaccine.