I never heard of the Omnibus Autism Proceeding until I happened to come across the terminology used over and over again when I was doing my research on vaccines and their link to autism. I decided one night to Google it and I was shocked at what I found out! There are so many people out there who have had children end up with autism (coincidentally) after either a shot or multiple shots that the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program had to come up with a system to deal with the approximately 5000 families. The bad news is that each family has to prove that vaccines injured their child.... the worst news is that there is a 3 year statute of limitations! (I will discuss that further in a moment.)
This is the link to the docket of the Omnibus Trial Hearing: http://www.uscfc.uscourts.gov/node/2718
I am lucky to have a wonderful husband who is a lawyer. I want to start off by saying that any information and comments I make on this post are not intended to be legal advice. I am just a mother who wants to make sure that others don't have to go through the same ordeal I did. I also want to spare you some mistakes I made.
When you go to the website you can actually click on the links to audio recording of the proceedings. I have to warn you that a lot of them are lengthy and you have to listen to a lot of legal discussions. However, there are some wonderful testimonies by MEDICAL doctors that you would be wise to listen to. I am not a medical doctor so what I say doesn't have as much merit as someone who has YEARS of medical experience. There are hours of testimony recorded and I urge you to listen to some of them. These are the directions on how to get to the recordings: 1) Place your mouse over "Vaccine Information" on the left-hand side of the page 2)Then click on "Autism Proceeding" (that will take you to the audio recordings and transcripts). You can listen to the proceedings while doing other things such as checking emails, etc... the audio will continue to play until you stop it. Also, you can click on the transcripts and read it a lot faster.
I read through most of the transcripts about two years ago. It was so interesting to me that I literally spent four hours one night reading through them. I had to stop myself because I became a little obsessed with the whole thing. I gave myself a break and then continued and found out that there were dozens of doctors and researchers involved in this case and even Johns Hopkins has a group working on a way to counteract the affects of vaccines on kids with autism.... possibly developing a "cure". I am totally convinced that if the public knew about this then something would get done quickly. All I want... all anyone wants is for vaccines to be safe. We already take a risk each time we give our kids shots and we shouldn't have to take more risks in the safety of the ingredients in shots. Everyone already knows that mercury is toxic. In small amounts it causes all sorts of brain damage. That's not rocket science. However, this trial or "proceeding" is to prove once and for all that vaccines can and DO cause autism in SOME children and that parents need to be aware of it.... especially if autism runs in their family.
My hope is that if enough people demand greener vaccines then the vaccine manufacturers will feel the pinch in their pockets and profits will drop to the extent that they will have NO choice but to meet the demands of concerned parents. It just doesn't have to be this way.
Now, I am ready to explain the process that needs to be executed as soon as possible, the time restrictions (statute of limitations), and how to best organize yourself to prepare documentation and your case. First of all, and most importantly, there is a 3 year statute of limitations on the Omnibus Autism Proceeding. That means that you have three years from the time of onset of injury to file your case. Simply put, if your child received shots and was injured more than 3 years ago, then you are out of luck. Even if it's an obvious injury... even if there is documentation... even if your child DIED.... you have only 3 years!!! This is one of the reasons I wanted to write this post. We were lucky and got our papers filed to the month of our 3 year cut-off. However, with my #2 (which we have a stronger case) we were out of luck. It happened more than 3 years ago. If you think you have a case then I urge you to act quickly.
The first step is to visit: http://www.hrsa.gov/vaccinecompensation/omnibusproceeding.htm
(Click on "Omnibus Autism Proceeding" on the right-hand side of the screen and it will direct you to the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. You can see a "Sample Filing" under the "Vaccine Information".) I was blessed to have a husband who could do it correctly. His legal background has helped us tremendously. I strongly recommend getting legal advice. However, it IS possible to do it yourself. You don't HAVE to get a lawyer to file your claim. Also, once it goes to D.C. you will be assigned legal counsel. They will handle things over there and you won't have to travel to Washington, D.C. I was kind of worried about that.
Next thing you need to do is get copies of all your medical records from all of the doctors that have treated or seen your child. I have to warn you that some doctors will charge you for this. One of my doctors charged me PER PAGE!! I had another doctor who was sweet enough to make the copies for FREE! Once you obtain these records you need to make copies... I would suggest 5 copies because you will need 3 just for filing. It's better to have extra just in case. Make sure that the notes and important information are legible on your copies. You might need to adjust the copier to make it darker in some cases. The medical records will become part of your exhibits or evidence and you want to make sure that the court can read them. Try to organize them in order and by doctor. In my case, I put each doctor in a separate "Exhibit" and placed all the laboratory testing and documentation made by that particular doctor. It made it easier to find information as needed. You have to submit your medical records either binded or electronically. We chose to do it on paper because we felt better about that. However, if you are computer savvy then you might prefer the electronic method. The website explains how to do it either way.
When you file your claim then you will receive directions from the court as to what they need and the deadlines. I URGE you to read it thoroughly and take note of the deadlines. We came very close a few times. Believe me, they aren't going to make it easy for you. The important thing is to keep copies of everything just in case and when you put together your exhibits and documentation make sure you make a copy for yourself. Learn from my mistake. You will need to send three copies of most everything and if you accidentally forget you can easily just copy what you have versus trying to figure out what you sent.
One thing I would like to discuss is how do you know if you have a case or not? Who needs to file a claim? What are the theories of causation? Good questions. First of all, there are THREE theories of causation. The first theory says that any mercury-containing vaccine can cause autism. The second says that mercury-containing vaccines PLUS MMR cause autism. The third says that only the MMR causes autism. (Very condensed version for sure. You can read more in depth in the website.) You will need to choose one theory of causation. We chose the first. My belief is that the cumulative effect of mercury-containing vaccines caused my child to have autism. We are extremely lucky that we were able to treat the damage caused by the vaccines, and she is much better now... not completely recovered, but she is a totally different child. I have to admit that I was hesitant about filing this claim. However, after much thought and prayer I realized that we HAD to. It wasn't only for our children, but for all those out there that don't have a voice. There are thousands of families that can't file because their child was injured more than 3 years ago. That is a travesty of justice, in my humble opinion. It doesn't change the fact that they were injured and those families have to live with the consequences.
Once you submit all of your evidence and affidavit then you will submit a statement of completion letting them know that you are done submitting information to the court. At this point it is in the hands of the court to look at the testimony and evidence and you will receive updates on what is going on. I looked at the docket and saw many cases that have been pending for years. So... this is definitely not going to be over any time soon. It is going to take years before it's over. One thing I forgot to mention is not to panic if the court calls you. I received a few calls from them and they were all very sweet. They will call if they need something or have a question. Also, don't hesitate to call THEM as well. Their number is on the correspondence that you will receive. Each case is assigned a different judge (or Special Masters), legal counsel, etc. so you will need to wait for them to send you the paperwork before you will know that information.
To recap:
1) Statute of limitations: 3 years
2) Make a decision on theory of causation. There are three theories.
3) Get copies of medical records and all evidence necessary for your case.
4) Go to the website and get information on filing your claim
5) The court will contact you via mail with all important information and instructions. Read it carefully and follow the deadlines.
6) Don't panic if they call you and don't hesitate to call them if you have ANY questions. Everyone I have spoken to has been very helpful and nice.
7) Be patient because this could take a very long time.
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"One can never consent to creep when one
feels an impulse to soar."-Helen Keller
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