Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (FOI)

​Request 677283585

I note from your website that the VDPS in the UK accepted claims from residents of Jersey as of the 13th May 2024.

I note that prior to that date claims were not permitted to be lodged with the VDPS in the UK.

Under the FOIA 2000 please provide

(a) A copy of, or a link to the contract of agreement created between Jersey and the UK to allow for these claims to be processed by the VDPS. Was the Vaccine Damage Payment Act 1979 altered/updated to allow for the change?

(b)Details of any changes to the VDPS created after that date to deal with the increased workload ie increased numbers of assessors etc

(c) Confirm whether or not claims submitted from Jersey will be added to the end of the queue of existing claims or assessed alongside the current backlog?

Response

Question (a)

The Government of Jersey has contracted with the NHS Business Services Authority to process claims for a vaccine damage payment by those who believe that eligible vaccines administered in Jersey have caused them damage. While the NHSBSA processes these claims in line with the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS), the Government of Jersey is responsible for final decisions. No changes to the Vaccine Damage Payment Act 1979 were required for this arrangement. 

As the public authority commissioning this service, the Government of Jersey has applied the public interest test to the request for the contract between the Government of Jersey and the VDPS.  While the disclosure of the requested information would promote transparency and accountability in allowing the public to understand how decisions are made and how public funds are spent, the requested information contains commercially sensitive details that, if disclosed, could harm the commercial interests of the public authority or third parties.  If this information is disclosed, there is a high degree of likelihood that this would lead to Jersey residents being unable to access the VDPS as it would harm the commercial relationship between the Government of Jersey and the NHSBSA.  This will reduce the ability for those who received vaccines in Jersey that caused them harm from receiving payment, in line with those who suffered similar harm cause by the same vaccines administered in the UK. 

After carefully considering the factors for and against disclosure, it is determined that the public interest in maintaining the exemption does not outweigh the public interest in disclosure. Therefore, the Government of Jersey has made the decision to withhold the requested information under Article 33 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2014.  

Question (b) 

All VDPS claims are medically assessed by an independent medical assessor. The number of independent medical assessors is managed by the supplier. We therefore do not hold information about the number of assessors working on claims at any one time, therefore Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2014 applies.

When an eligible claim is received, a caseworker writes to the healthcare providers listed on the claim form. They do this to obtain medical records in relation to the care the vaccinated person received. These medical records are shared with an independent medical assessor. 

We increased the number of caseworkers working on the VDPS prior to start of the scheme in Jersey in May 2024.  

Question (c) 

The VDPS in Jersey is separate to the UK and Isle of Man. Unlike the UK and Isle of Man, the Vaccine Damage Payments Act 1979 does not cover Jersey. However, the Government of Jersey adopted the same approach as the UK and Isle of Man scheme in terms of the eligibility criteria and payment amount. 

Claims are assessed by an independent medical assessor for both schemes in date order. This means the earliest received claims are assessed first. However, as the schemes are separate in terms of the governments responsible for them, Jersey claims are kept separate from UK and Isle of Man claims. Therefore, the addition of the scheme bears no impact on the UK scheme.

Article applied

Article 3 - Meaning of “information held by a public authority”

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a)     it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b)     it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 33 - Commercial interests

Information is qualified exempt information if –

(a) it constitutes a trade secret; or

(b) its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of a person (including the scheduled public authority holding the information).

Public Interest Test

Article 33(b) of the Freedom of Information Law allows an authority to refuse a request for information where its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of a person (including the scheduled public authority holding the information). 

Whilst the disclosure of the requested information would promote transparency and accountability in allowing the public to understand how decisions are made and how public funds are spent, the requested information contains commercially sensitive details that, if disclosed, could harm the commercial interests of the public authority or third parties. ​