Military personnel punished for refusing anthrax vaccine seek compensation
In response to recent court ruling, affected service members are preparing to petition the Pentagon to have their records cleared.
Military personnel who were punished for refusing to take anthrax vaccine want their records cleared of wrongdoing after a federal judge ruled the vaccine is not properly licensed for its intended use, their lawyers said Thursday.
In response to a lawsuit filed by six anonymous plaintiffs, a federal judge ruled Oct. 27 that the Defense Department must stop administering its anthrax vaccine to service members. The six plaintiffs are either on active duty or are National Guard members or civilian Defense contract employees.
John Michels, a partner in the Chicago law firm of McGuireWoods and one of two lawyers who represented the plaintiffs, said those who were removed from duty or punished for refusing anthrax vaccine shots should be reinstated or compensated for time lost. He estimated that as many as 600 military personnel have been discharged since 1998 either as a result of administrative action or court martial for refusing the anthrax vaccine.
"The soldiers that DoD discharged for refusing to take the shots are entitled to back pay and allowances from the date they were removed from paid status to the point where DoD properly decides what to do with them," Michels said. "In fairness to the hundreds of service members who were wrongfully separated from active duty, DoD should begin processing each one for compensation and reinstatement, particularly if it wants to avoid congressional involvement."
Judge Emmet Sullivan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that the Federal Drug Administration did not follow proper procedures or allow for sufficient public comment when it determined last December that the anthrax vaccine was safe and effective against inhaled anthrax. Sullivan said the vaccine could not be administered unless service members signed a consent form or the Pentagon got a presidential waiver.
It is not clear if the government will appeal the ruling. The Pentagon and Justice Department did not return telephone calls Thursday seeking comment.
Michels said affected personnel are preparing to petition the Pentagon to have their official records cleared of wrongdoing. Each service has a Board for Correction of Military Records, which makes recommendations to the secretary of each service to correct the military record of a service member or veteran.
If the boards do not correct the records, Michels said, another lawsuit could be filed. "We'll just have to see how this plays out," he said.
In addition to service members who were discharged, the attorneys said there are hundreds of others who voluntarily left active duty or the reserve to avoid the vaccine, and others who developed illnesses immediately after receiving the shots.
Michels said he and Mark Zaid, managing partner of Krieger & Zaid in Washington, have received hundreds of e-mails since the Oct. 27 ruling from people who claim to have fallen ill after taking the vaccine.