US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

March 1, 2008

this is ver old article,-2002pamelaleigh@... wrote: US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine RecordsTue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ETBy Todd Zwillichhttp://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews & storyID=1808546WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked afederal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases

ofautism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court ofFederal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their automaticdisclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to decide when andhow the material should be released.Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged thatthe government was trying to keep the information out of civil courts,where juries might be conv inced to award large judgments against vaccinemanufacturers.The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought by thefamilies of autistic children. The suits charge that themeasles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included amercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal [sic], can causeneurological damage leading to autism.Federal law requires suits against vaccine

makers to go before a specialfederal "vaccine court" before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The court wasset up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect vaccinemakers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by juries in statecivil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases to state courts ifthey lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't accept the court'sjudgment.The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. Because itreceived so many claims, much of the fact-finding and evidence-gathering isgoing on for all of the cases as a block.Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent plaintiffs wholater go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated duringthe required vaccine court proceedings.Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of thefamilies of injured children because it would require them to

incur thetime and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit."Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would be tocompensate lawyers," said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher BolandMeiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of autisticchildren who received the MMR vaccine.Kim accused the government of trying to lower "a shroud of secrecy overthese documents" in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he saidwere "the only entities" that would benefit if the documents are sealed.While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in individualvaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like the onegenerating evidence in the autism cases.Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that theyrequested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the Secretary ofHealth and Human Services to decide when vaccine

evidence can be releasedto the public.Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let plaintiffsuse the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would confer anadvantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal compensation."There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are enhancedrights in a subsequent civil action," Matanoski said of the plaintiffs."They're still going to have unfettered use within the proceedings."Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to s eal thecourt documents, but did say that his decision would be "very prompt."*The material in this post is distributed withoutprofit to those who have expressed a prior interestin receiving the included information for researchand educational purposes.For more information go to:http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.htmlhttp://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htmIf you wish to use copyrighted material from thisemail for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', youmust obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*

March 1, 2008

notice the date, one week after the conceded case

>

> US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

>

> Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET

> By Todd Zwillich

> http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?

type=healthNews & storyID=1808546

>

> WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush Administration

asked a

> federal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of

cases of

> autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the

public.

>

> Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US

Court of

> Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their

automatic

> disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to decide

when and

> how the material should be released.

>

> Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged

that

> the government was trying to keep the information out of civil

courts,

> where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against

vaccine

> manufacturers.

>

> The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought

by the

> families of autistic children. The suits charge that the

> measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a

> mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal [sic], can cause

> neurological damage leading to autism.

>

> Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a

special

> federal " vaccine court " before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The

court was

> set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect

vaccine

> makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by juries

in state

> civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases to state

courts if

> they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't accept the

court's

> judgment.

>

> The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court.

Because it

> received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and evidence-

gathering is

> going on for all of the cases as a block.

>

> Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent

plaintiffs who

> later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated

during

> the required vaccine court proceedings.

>

> Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of

the

> families of injured children because it would require them to incur

the

> time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.

>

> " Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would

be to

> compensate lawyers, " said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher

Boland

> Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of

autistic

> children who received the MMR vaccine.

>

> Kim accused the government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy

over

> these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he

said

> were " the only entities " that would benefit if the documents are

sealed.

>

> While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in

individual

> vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like

the one

> generating evidence in the autism cases.

>

> Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they

> requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the

Secretary of

> Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be

released

> to the public.

>

> Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let

plaintiffs

> use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would confer an

> advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal compensation.

>

> " There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are

enhanced

> rights in a subsequent civil action, " Matanoski said of the

plaintiffs.

> " They're still going to have unfettered use within the proceedings. "

>

> Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to

seal the

> court documents, but did say that his decision would be " very

prompt. "

>

> *

>

> The material in this post is distributed without

> profit to those who have expressed a prior interest

> in receiving the included information for research

> and educational purposes.For more information go to:

> http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

> http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm

> If you wish to use copyrighted material from this

> email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you

> must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*

>

March 1, 2008

I think this is why many news organizations are

waiting to report. Unfortuantely, I'm not surprised

Bush would do this.

--- trophyfish2 <gus@...> wrote:

> notice the date, one week after the conceded case

>

> >

> > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

> >

> > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET

> > By Todd Zwillich

> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?

> type=healthNews & storyID=1808546

> >

> > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the

> Bush Administration

> asked a

> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on

> hundreds of

> cases of

> > autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be

> kept from the

> public.

> >

> > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special

> master in the US

> Court of

> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that

> allowing their

> automatic

> > disclosure would take away the right of federal

> agencies to decide

> when and

> > how the material should be released.

> >

> > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic

> children charged

> that

> > the government was trying to keep the information

> out of civil

> courts,

> > where juries might be convinced to award large

> judgments against

> vaccine

> > manufacturers.

> >

> > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000

> claims brought

> by the

> > families of autistic children. The suits charge

> that the

> > measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until

> recently included a

> > mercury-containing preservative known as

> thimerosal [sic], can cause

> > neurological damage leading to autism.

> >

> > Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers

> to go before a

> special

> > federal " vaccine court " before any civil lawsuit

> is allowed. The

> court was

> > set up by Congress to speed compensation claims

> and to help protect

> vaccine

> > makers from having to pay large punitive awards

> decided by juries

> in state

> > civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their

> cases to state

> courts if

> > they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they

> don't accept the

> court's

> > judgment.

> >

> > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual

> for the court.

> Because it

> > received so many claims, much of the fact-finding

> and evidence-

> gathering is

> > going on for all of the cases as a block.

> >

> > Monday's request by the Bush Administration would

> prevent

> plaintiffs who

> > later go to civil court from using some relevant

> evidence generated

> during

> > the required vaccine court proceedings.

> >

> > Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted

> to punishment of

> the

> > families of injured children because it would

> require them to incur

> the

> > time and expense of regenerating evidence for a

> civil suit.

> >

> > " Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day

> our policy would

> be to

> > compensate lawyers, " said Jeff Kim, an attorney

> with Gallagher

> Boland

> > Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400

> families of

> autistic

> > children who received the MMR vaccine.

> >

> > Kim accused the government of trying to lower " a

> shroud of secrecy

> over

> > these documents " in order to protect vaccine

> manufacturers, who he

> said

> > were " the only entities " that would benefit if the

> documents are

> sealed.

> >

> > While federal law clearly seals most documents

> generated in

> individual

> > vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a

> block proceeding like

> the one

> > generating evidence in the autism cases.

> >

> > Administration lawyers told Special Master

> Hastings that they

> > requested the seal in order to preserve the legal

> right of the

> Secretary of

> > Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine

> evidence can be

> released

> > to the public.

> >

> > Justice Department attorney Matanoski

> argued that to let

> plaintiffs

> > use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil

> suit would confer an

> > advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal

> compensation.

> >

> > " There is no secret here. What the petitioners are

> arguing for are

> enhanced

> > rights in a subsequent civil action, " Matanoski

> said of the

> plaintiffs.

> > " They're still going to have unfettered use within

> the proceedings. "

> >

> > Hastings would not say when he would issue a

> ruling on whether to

> seal the

> > court documents, but did say that his decision

> would be " very

> prompt. "

> >

> > *

> >

> > The material in this post is distributed without

> > profit to those who have expressed a prior

> interest

> > in receiving the included information for research

> > and educational purposes.For more information go

> to:

> > http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

> > http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm

> > If you wish to use copyrighted material from this

> > email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you

> > must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*

> >

> > [Non-text portions of this message have been

> removed]

> >

>

________________________________________________________________________________\

____

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March 1, 2008

Notice the year behind the date. This was from back when vaccine court was first started and not from this past November. Jane"L. T" <mrefus@...> wrote: I think this is why many news organizations arewaiting to report. Unfortuantely, I'm not surprisedBush would do this. --- trophyfish2 <gusindedge> wrote:> notice the date, one week after the conceded case> > > >> > > > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records> > > > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET> > By Todd Zwillich> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?> type=healthNews & storyID=1808546> > > > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the> Bush Administration > asked a> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on> hundreds of > cases of> > autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be> kept from the > public.> > > > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special> master in the US > Court of> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that> allowing their

> automatic> > disclosure would take away the right of federal> agencies to decide > when and> > how the material should be released.> > > > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic> children charged > that> > the government was trying to keep the information> out of civil > courts,> > where juries might be convinced to award large> judgments against > vaccine> > manufacturers.> > > > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000> claims brought > by the> > families of autistic children. The suits charge> that the> > measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until> recently included a> > mercury-containing preservative known as> thimerosal [sic], can cause> > neurological damage leading to autism.> > > >

Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers> to go before a > special> > federal "vaccine court" before any civil lawsuit> is allowed. The > court was> > set up by Congress to speed compensation claims> and to help protect > vaccine> > makers from having to pay large punitive awards> decided by juries > in state> > civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their> cases to state > courts if> > they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they> don't accept the > court's> > judgment.> > > > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual> for the court. > Because it> > received so many claims, much of the fact-finding> and evidence-> gathering is> > going on for all of the cases as a block.> > > > Monday's request by the Bush Administration

would> prevent > plaintiffs who> > later go to civil court from using some relevant> evidence generated > during> > the required vaccine court proceedings.> > > > Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted> to punishment of > the> > families of injured children because it would> require them to incur > the> > time and expense of regenerating evidence for a> civil suit.> > > > "Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day> our policy would > be to> > compensate lawyers," said Jeff Kim, an attorney> with Gallagher > Boland> > Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400> families of > autistic> > children who received the MMR vaccine.> > > > Kim accused the government of trying to lower "a> shroud of secrecy >

over> > these documents" in order to protect vaccine> manufacturers, who he > said> > were "the only entities" that would benefit if the> documents are > sealed.> > > > While federal law clearly seals most documents> generated in > individual> > vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a> block proceeding like > the one> > generating evidence in the autism cases.> > > > Administration lawyers told Special Master > Hastings that they> > requested the seal in order to preserve the legal> right of the > Secretary of> > Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine> evidence can be > released> > to the public.> > > > Justice Department attorney Matanoski> argued that to let > plaintiffs> > use the vaccine court

evidence in a later civil> suit would confer an> > advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal> compensation.> > > > "There is no secret here. What the petitioners are> arguing for are > enhanced> > rights in a subsequent civil action," Matanoski> said of the > plaintiffs.> > "They're still going to have unfettered use within> the proceedings."> > > > Hastings would not say when he would issue a> ruling on whether to > seal the> > court documents, but did say that his decision> would be "very > prompt."> > > > *> > > > The material in this post is distributed without> > profit to those who have expressed a prior> interest> > in receiving the included information for research> > and educational purposes.For more information

go> to:> > http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html> > http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm> > If you wish to use copyrighted material from this> > email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you> > must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*> > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been> removed]> >> > > __________________________________________________________Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile./;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ

Never miss a thing. Make your homepage.

March 1, 2008

No, this article is from Nov. 2002trophyfish2 <gus@...> wrote: notice the date, one week after the conceded case>> > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records> > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET> By Todd Zwillich> http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews & storyID=1808546>

> WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked a> federal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases of> autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.> > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court of> Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their automatic> disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to decide when and> how the material should be released.> > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged that> the government was trying to keep the information out of civil courts,> where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against vaccine> manufacturers.> > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought by the> families of autistic children.

The suits charge that the> measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a> mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal [sic], can cause> neurological damage leading to autism.> > Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a special> federal "vaccine court" before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The court was> set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect vaccine> makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by juries in state> civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases to state courts if> they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't accept the court's> judgment.> > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. Because it> received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and evidence-gathering is> going on for all

of the cases as a block.> > Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent plaintiffs who> later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated during> the required vaccine court proceedings.> > Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of the> families of injured children because it would require them to incur the> time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.> > "Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would be to> compensate lawyers," said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher Boland> Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of autistic> children who received the MMR vaccine.> > Kim accused the government of trying to lower "a shroud of secrecy over> these documents" in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he

said> were "the only entities" that would benefit if the documents are sealed.> > While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in individual> vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like the one> generating evidence in the autism cases.> > Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they> requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the Secretary of> Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be released> to the public.> > Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let plaintiffs> use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would confer an> advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal compensation.> > "There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are enhanced> rights in a subsequent civil

action," Matanoski said of the plaintiffs.> "They're still going to have unfettered use within the proceedings."> > Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to seal the> court documents, but did say that his decision would be "very prompt."> > *> > The material in this post is distributed without> profit to those who have expressed a prior interest> in receiving the included information for research> and educational purposes.For more information go to:> http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html> http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm> If you wish to use copyrighted material from this> email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you> must obtain permission

from the copyright owner*.*> >

March 1, 2008

People, please look at the date. It is 6 years old. Maurine"L. T" <mrefus@...> wrote: I think this is why many news organizations arewaiting to report. Unfortuantely, I'm not surprisedBush would do this. --- trophyfish2 <gusindedge> wrote:> notice the date, one week after the conceded case> > >

>> > > > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records> > > > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET> > By Todd Zwillich> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?> type=healthNews & storyID=1808546> > > > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the> Bush Administration > asked a> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on> hundreds of > cases of> > autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be> kept from the > public.> > > > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special> master in the US > Court of> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that> allowing their > automatic> > disclosure would take away the right of federal> agencies to decide >

when and> > how the material should be released.> > > > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic> children charged > that> > the government was trying to keep the information> out of civil > courts,> > where juries might be convinced to award large> judgments against > vaccine> > manufacturers.> > > > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000> claims brought > by the> > families of autistic children. The suits charge> that the> > measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until> recently included a> > mercury-containing preservative known as> thimerosal [sic], can cause> > neurological damage leading to autism.> > > > Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers> to go before a > special> > federal "vaccine

court" before any civil lawsuit> is allowed. The > court was> > set up by Congress to speed compensation claims> and to help protect > vaccine> > makers from having to pay large punitive awards> decided by juries > in state> > civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their> cases to state > courts if> > they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they> don't accept the > court's> > judgment.> > > > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual> for the court. > Because it> > received so many claims, much of the fact-finding> and evidence-> gathering is> > going on for all of the cases as a block.> > > > Monday's request by the Bush Administration would> prevent > plaintiffs who> > later go to civil court from using some relevant>

evidence generated > during> > the required vaccine court proceedings.> > > > Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted> to punishment of > the> > families of injured children because it would> require them to incur > the> > time and expense of regenerating evidence for a> civil suit.> > > > "Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day> our policy would > be to> > compensate lawyers," said Jeff Kim, an attorney> with Gallagher > Boland> > Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400> families of > autistic> > children who received the MMR vaccine.> > > > Kim accused the government of trying to lower "a> shroud of secrecy > over> > these documents" in order to protect vaccine> manufacturers, who he > said>

> were "the only entities" that would benefit if the> documents are > sealed.> > > > While federal law clearly seals most documents> generated in > individual> > vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a> block proceeding like > the one> > generating evidence in the autism cases.> > > > Administration lawyers told Special Master > Hastings that they> > requested the seal in order to preserve the legal> right of the > Secretary of> > Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine> evidence can be > released> > to the public.> > > > Justice Department attorney Matanoski> argued that to let > plaintiffs> > use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil> suit would confer an> > advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo

federal> compensation.> > > > "There is no secret here. What the petitioners are> arguing for are > enhanced> > rights in a subsequent civil action," Matanoski> said of the > plaintiffs.> > "They're still going to have unfettered use within> the proceedings."> > > > Hastings would not say when he would issue a> ruling on whether to > seal the> > court documents, but did say that his decision> would be "very > prompt."> > > > *> > > > The material in this post is distributed without> > profit to those who have expressed a prior> interest> > in receiving the included information for research> > and educational purposes.For more information go> to:> > http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html> > http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm> > If you wish to use copyrighted material from this> > email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you> > must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*> > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been> removed]> >> > > __________________________________________________________Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile./;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ

Never miss a thing. Make your homepage.

March 1, 2008

The question is, how did the judge rule back in 2002? The ruling might still apply.Peace,Kathy E.On Mar 1, 2008, at 11:54 AM, Maurine Meleck wrote:this is ver old article,-2002pamelaleighcomcast (DOT) net wrote:US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine RecordsTue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ETBy Todd Zwillichhttp://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews & storyID=1808546WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked afederal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases ofautism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court ofFederal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their automaticdisclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to decide when andhow the material should be released.

March 2, 2008

Wait, is the one going around from 2002? I've seen

this on many sites????? Is this true or not?

--- Kathleen Eickwort <Kathleen_E@...> wrote:

> The question is, how did the judge rule back in

> 2002? The ruling

> might still apply.

>

> Peace,

> Kathy E.

> On Mar 1, 2008, at 11:54 AM, Maurine Meleck wrote:

>

> > this is ver old article,-2002

> >

> > pamelaleigh@... wrote:

> >

> > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

> >

> > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET

> > By Todd Zwillich

> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?

> > type=healthNews & storyID=1808546

> >

> > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the

> Bush Administration

> > asked a

> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on

> hundreds of

> > cases of

> > autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be

> kept from the public.

> >

> > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special

> master in the US

> > Court of

> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that

> allowing their

> > automatic

> > disclosure would take away the right of federal

> agencies to decide

> > when and

> > how the material should be released.

>

________________________________________________________________________________\

____

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March 2, 2008

this was in reference to the many cases filed in vaccine Court. At the time, that was all that it referred to. It occurred at the time when the rider relating to drug litigation was sneaked into the Homeland Security Act. In case you didn't know it-the Bush Administration has information sealed all the time on all kinds of issues. That's how he has run his administration for almost 8 years. Maurine"L. T" <mrefus@...> wrote: Wait, is the one going around from 2002? I've

seenthis on many sites????? Is this true or not? --- Kathleen Eickwort <Kathleen_Eusa (DOT) net> wrote:> The question is, how did the judge rule back in> 2002? The ruling > might still apply.> > Peace,> Kathy E.> On Mar 1, 2008, at 11:54 AM, Maurine Meleck wrote:> > > this is ver old article,-2002> >> > pamelaleighcomcast (DOT) net wrote:> >> >> > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records> >> > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET> > By Todd Zwillich> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml? > > type=healthNews & storyID=1808546> >> > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the> Bush

Administration > > asked a> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on> hundreds of > > cases of> > autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be> kept from the public.> >> > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special> master in the US > > Court of> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that> allowing their > > automatic> > disclosure would take away the right of federal> agencies to decide > > when and> > how the material should be released.> > __________________________________________________________Never miss a thing. Make your home page. http://www./r/hs

Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Mobile. Try it now.

March 2, 2008

someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this didn't come to pass at the time/. maurineMaurine Meleck <maurine_meleck@...> wrote: No, this article is from Nov. 2002trophyfish2 <gusindedge> wrote: notice the date, one week after the conceded case>> > US

Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records> > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET> By Todd Zwillich> http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews & storyID=1808546> > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked a> federal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases of> autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.> > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court of> Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their automatic> disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to decide when and> how the material should be released.> > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged that> the government was trying

to keep the information out of civil courts,> where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against vaccine> manufacturers.> > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought by the> families of autistic children. The suits charge that the> measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a> mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal [sic], can cause> neurological damage leading to autism.> > Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a special> federal "vaccine court" before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The court was> set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect vaccine> makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by juries in state> civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases to state courts if> they lose in the

federal vaccine court or if they don't accept the court's> judgment.> > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. Because it> received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and evidence-gathering is> going on for all of the cases as a block.> > Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent plaintiffs who> later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated during> the required vaccine court proceedings.> > Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of the> families of injured children because it would require them to incur the> time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.> > "Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would be to> compensate lawyers," said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher Boland> Meiburger &

Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of autistic> children who received the MMR vaccine.> > Kim accused the government of trying to lower "a shroud of secrecy over> these documents" in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he said> were "the only entities" that would benefit if the documents are sealed.> > While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in individual> vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like the one> generating evidence in the autism cases.> > Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they> requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the Secretary of> Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be released> to the public.> > Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let

plaintiffs> use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would confer an> advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal compensation.> > "There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are enhanced> rights in a subsequent civil action," Matanoski said of the plaintiffs.> "They're still going to have unfettered use within the proceedings."> > Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to seal the> court documents, but did say that his decision would be "very prompt."> > *> > The material in this post is distributed without> profit to those who have expressed a prior interest> in receiving the included information for research> and educational purposes.For more information go to:> http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html> http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm> If you wish to use copyrighted material from this> email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you> must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*> >

March 2, 2008

Hi Maurine,

I remember reading this when it happened, but I don't know the final

outcome. I can tell you that Special Master Hastings and Chief

Special Master Golkiewicz went out of their way to make the hearing

transcripts (and audio on ours) from the three test cases available

on a daily basis for the benefit of the other families in the

Omnibus. I'm told this was quite an undertaking for a court that

normally is limited to the parties involved. I also believe that at

the beginning, maybe around the time of this article, there was some

concern about privacy to families. I know that each of the families

are first asked if their childs' information can be made public. I

think that overall the court has tried to help the families be as

informed as possible. Same goes for the Omnibus website.

Theresa

> >

> > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

> >

> > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET

> > By Todd Zwillich

> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?

> type=healthNews & storyID=1808546

> >

> > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush

Administration

> asked a

> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of

> cases of

> > autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the

> public.

> >

> > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US

> Court of

> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their

> automatic

> > disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to

decide

> when and

> > how the material should be released.

> >

> > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children

charged

> that

> > the government was trying to keep the information out of civil

> courts,

> > where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against

> vaccine

> > manufacturers.

> >

> > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought

> by the

> > families of autistic children. The suits charge that the

> > measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently

included a

> > mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal [sic], can

cause

> > neurological damage leading to autism.

> >

> > Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a

> special

> > federal " vaccine court " before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The

> court was

> > set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help

protect

> vaccine

> > makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by juries

> in state

> > civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases to state

> courts if

> > they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't accept

the

> court's

> > judgment.

> >

> > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court.

> Because it

> > received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and evidence-

> gathering is

> > going on for all of the cases as a block.

> >

> > Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent

> plaintiffs who

> > later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence

generated

> during

> > the required vaccine court proceedings.

> >

> > Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment

of

> the

> > families of injured children because it would require them to

incur

> the

> > time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.

> >

> > " Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would

> be to

> > compensate lawyers, " said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher

> Boland

> > Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of

> autistic

> > children who received the MMR vaccine.

> >

> > Kim accused the government of trying to lower " a shroud of

secrecy

> over

> > these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who

he

> said

> > were " the only entities " that would benefit if the documents are

> sealed.

> >

> > While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in

> individual

> > vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding

like

> the one

> > generating evidence in the autism cases.

> >

> > Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that

they

> > requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the

> Secretary of

> > Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be

> released

> > to the public.

> >

> > Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let

> plaintiffs

> > use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would confer

an

> > advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal compensation.

> >

> > " There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for

are

> enhanced

> > rights in a subsequent civil action, " Matanoski said of the

> plaintiffs.

> > " They're still going to have unfettered use within the

proceedings. "

> >

> > Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to

> seal the

> > court documents, but did say that his decision would be " very

> prompt. "

> >

> > *

> >

> > The material in this post is distributed without

> > profit to those who have expressed a prior interest

> > in receiving the included information for research

> > and educational purposes.For more information go to:

> > http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

> > http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm

> > If you wish to use copyrighted material from this

> > email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you

> > must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*

> >

March 2, 2008

The Dept of Justice ("DOJ") withdrew the 2002 secrecy request. A similar request was made in 2007 to keep the hearings closed. This was also withdrawn after everyone involved told the DOJ that their idea was not a good one.You can see links to the more recent DOJ secrecy request, that was withdrawn, here:http://a-champ.org/vaccinecourt.htmlOn Mar 2, 2008, at 3:20 AM, Theresa Cedillo wrote:Hi Maurine,I remember reading this when it happened, but I don't know the final outcome. I can tell you that Special Master Hastings and Chief Special Master Golkiewicz went out of their way to make the hearing transcripts (and audio on ours) from the three test cases available on a daily basis for the benefit of the other families in the Omnibus. I'm told this was quite an undertaking for a court that normally is limited to the parties involved. I also believe that at the beginning, maybe around the time of this article, there was some concern about privacy to families. I know that each of the families are first asked if their childs' information can be made public. I think that overall the court has tried to help the families be as informed as possible. Same goes for the Omnibus website.Theresa> >> > > > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records> > > > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET> > By Todd Zwillich> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?> type=healthNews & storyID=1808546> > > > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush Administration > asked a> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of > cases of> > autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the > public.> > > > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US > Court of> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their > automatic> > disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to decide > when and> > how the material should be released.> > > > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged > that> > the government was trying to keep the information out of civil > courts,> > where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against > vaccine> > manufacturers.> > > > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought > by the> > families of autistic children. The suits charge that the> > measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a> > mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal [sic], can cause> > neurological damage leading to autism.> > > > Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a > special> > federal "vaccine court" before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The > court was> > set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect > vaccine> > makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by juries > in state> > civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases to state > courts if> > they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't accept the > court's> > judgment.> > > > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. > Because it> > received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and evidence-> gathering is> > going on for all of the cases as a block.> > > > Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent > plaintiffs who> > later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated > during> > the required vaccine court proceedings.> > > > Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of > the> > families of injured children because it would require them to incur > the> > time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.> > > > "Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would > be to> > compensate lawyers," said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher > Boland> > Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of > autistic> > children who received the MMR vaccine.> > > > Kim accused the government of trying to lower "a shroud of secrecy > over> > these documents" in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he > said> > were "the only entities" that would benefit if the documents are > sealed.> > > > While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in > individual> > vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like > the one> > generating evidence in the autism cases.> > > > Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they> > requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the > Secretary of> > Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be > released> > to the public.> > > > Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let > plaintiffs> > use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would confer an> > advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal compensation.> > > > "There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are > enhanced> > rights in a subsequent civil action," Matanoski said of the > plaintiffs.> > "They're still going to have unfettered use within the proceedings."> > > > Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to > seal the> > court documents, but did say that his decision would be "very > prompt."> > > > *> > > > The material in this post is distributed without> > profit to those who have expressed a prior interest> > in receiving the included information for research> > and educational purposes.For more information go to:> > http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html> > http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm> > If you wish to use copyrighted material from this> > email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you> > must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*> > > >

March 2, 2008

Because the actual cases were years off(2002) I am not sure that this was referring to the cases when they started(like yours) unless they were planning in advance. Perhaps B.K. can shed more light on this at some point. In any case, I believe that this Bush proposal was not passed.. Anyone else? M PS Well, it doesn't really matter, at this point I guess, as the info is out.Theresa Cedillo <Beedle@...> wrote: Hi Maurine,I remember reading this when it happened, but I don't know the final

outcome. I can tell you that Special Master Hastings and Chief Special Master Golkiewicz went out of their way to make the hearing transcripts (and audio on ours) from the three test cases available on a daily basis for the benefit of the other families in the Omnibus. I'm told this was quite an undertaking for a court that normally is limited to the parties involved. I also believe that at the beginning, maybe around the time of this article, there was some concern about privacy to families. I know that each of the families are first asked if their childs' information can be made public. I think that overall the court has tried to help the families be as informed as possible. Same goes for the Omnibus website.Theresa> >> > > > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records> > > > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET> > By Todd Zwillich> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?> type=healthNews & storyID=1808546> > > > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush Administration > asked a> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of > cases of> > autism allegedly

caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the > public.> > > > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US > Court of> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their > automatic> > disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to decide > when and> > how the material should be released.> > > > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged > that> > the government was trying to keep the information out of civil > courts,> > where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against > vaccine> > manufacturers.> > > > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought > by the> > families of autistic children. The suits charge that the> > measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine,

which until recently included a> > mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal [sic], can cause> > neurological damage leading to autism.> > > > Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a > special> > federal "vaccine court" before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The > court was> > set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect > vaccine> > makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by juries > in state> > civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases to state > courts if> > they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't accept the > court's> > judgment.> > > > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. > Because it> > received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and

evidence-> gathering is> > going on for all of the cases as a block.> > > > Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent > plaintiffs who> > later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated > during> > the required vaccine court proceedings.> > > > Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of > the> > families of injured children because it would require them to incur > the> > time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.> > > > "Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would > be to> > compensate lawyers," said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher > Boland> > Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of > autistic> > children who received the MMR

vaccine.> > > > Kim accused the government of trying to lower "a shroud of secrecy > over> > these documents" in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he > said> > were "the only entities" that would benefit if the documents are > sealed.> > > > While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in > individual> > vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like > the one> > generating evidence in the autism cases.> > > > Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they> > requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the > Secretary of> > Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be > released> > to the public.> > > > Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to

let > plaintiffs> > use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would confer an> > advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal compensation.> > > > "There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are > enhanced> > rights in a subsequent civil action," Matanoski said of the > plaintiffs.> > "They're still going to have unfettered use within the proceedings."> > > > Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to > seal the> > court documents, but did say that his decision would be "very > prompt."> > > > *> > > > The material in this post is distributed without> > profit to those who have expressed a prior interest> > in receiving the included information for research> > and educational purposes.For more information

go to:> > http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html> > http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm> > If you wish to use copyrighted material from this> > email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you> > must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*> > > >

March 2, 2008

ok well, there you go. I saw this reponse after I responded. Krakow <rkrakow@...> wrote: The Dept of Justice ("DOJ") withdrew the 2002 secrecy request. A similar request was made in 2007 to keep the hearings closed. This was also withdrawn after everyone involved told the DOJ that their idea was not a good one. You can see links to the more recent DOJ secrecy request, that was withdrawn, here: http://a-champ.org/vaccinecourt.html On Mar 2, 2008, at 3:20 AM, Theresa Cedillo wrote: Hi Maurine,I remember reading this when it happened, but I don't know the final outcome. I can tell you that Special Master Hastings and Chief Special Master Golkiewicz went out of their way to make the

hearing transcripts (and audio on ours) from the three test cases available on a daily basis for the benefit of the other families in the Omnibus. I'm told this was quite an undertaking for a court that normally is limited to the parties involved. I also believe that at the beginning, maybe around the time of this article, there was some concern about privacy to families. I know that each of the families are first asked if their childs' information can be made public. I think that overall the court has tried to help the families be as informed as possible. Same goes for the Omnibus website.Theresa> >> > > > US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records> > > > Tue November 26, 2002 10:47 AM ET> > By Todd Zwillich> > http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?> type=healthNews & storyID=1808546> > > > WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - Attorneys for the Bush Administration > asked a> > federal court on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of > cases of> > autism allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the > public.> > > > Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US > Court of> > Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their > automatic> > disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to decide > when and> > how the material should be released.> > > > Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged > that> > the government was trying to keep the information out of civil > courts,> > where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against > vaccine> > manufacturers.> > > > The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought > by the> > families of autistic children. The suits charge that the> > measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a> > mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal [sic], can cause> > neurological damage leading to autism.> > > > Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a > special> > federal "vaccine court" before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The > court was> > set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect > vaccine> > makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by juries > in state> > civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases to state > courts if> > they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't accept the > court's> > judgment.> > > > The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. > Because it> > received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and evidence-> gathering is> > going on for all of the cases as a block.> > > > Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent > plaintiffs who> > later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated > during> > the required vaccine court proceedings.> > > > Plaintiffs' attorneys said

that the order amounted to punishment of > the> > families of injured children because it would require them to incur > the> > time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.> > > > "Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would > be to> > compensate lawyers," said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher > Boland> > Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of > autistic> > children who received the MMR vaccine.> > > > Kim accused the government of trying to lower "a shroud of secrecy > over> > these documents" in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he > said> > were "the only entities" that would benefit if the documents are > sealed.> > > > While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in > individual> > vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like > the one> > generating

evidence in the autism cases.> > > > Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they> > requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the > Secretary of> > Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be > released> > to the public.> > > > Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let > plaintiffs> > use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would confer an> > advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal compensation.> > > > "There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are > enhanced> > rights in a subsequent civil action," Matanoski said of the > plaintiffs.> > "They're still going to have unfettered use within the proceedings."> > > > Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to > seal the> > court documents, but did say that his decision would be "very > prompt."> > > > *> > > > The material in this post is distributed without> > profit to those who have expressed a prior interest> > in receiving the included information for research> > and educational purposes.For more information go to:> > http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html> > http://oregon.uoregon.edu/~csundt/documents.htm> > If you wish to use copyrighted material from this> > email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you> > must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*> > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been

removed]> >> > > > > > ---------------------------------> Looking for last minute shopping deals? Find them fast with Search. > > > > > ---------------------------------> Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Mobile. Try it now.> J. Krakow Attorney at Law 1205 lin Avenue, Suite 110 Garden City, New York 11530 516-354-3300 646-349-1771 (fax) rkrakowearthlink (DOT) net

Looking for last minute shopping deals? Find them fast with Search.

March 11, 2008

> From: " VERACARE " <veracare@...>

> Date: March 11, 2008 3:10:23 PM EDT

> " Infomail1ahrp (DOT) org " <Infomail1@...>

> Subject: US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

>

> ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION

> Promoting Openness, Full Disclosure, and Accountability

> http://www.ahrp.org and http://ahrp.blogspot.com

>

> FYI

> A news report from Winnipeg states that the Administration is

> seeking to

> conceal vaccine-autism related evidence gathered in preparation for

> the

> vaccine court proceedings from the public.

>

> Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children accused

> the

> government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

> these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers who were

> trying

> to keep the information out of civil courts,

> where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against them.

>

> The Hannah Poling case is NOT the first vaccine-autism case to be

> settled by

> the government in favor of plaintiffs.

>

> According to Golkiewicz, chief special master for the U.S.

> Court of

> Federal Claims, who oversees the special " vaccine court " which rules

> on

> requests for payments from the vaccine injury fund:

> " The case may not be a first. Years ago, actually, I had a case,

> before we

> understood or knew the implications of autism, that the vaccine

> injured the

> child's brain caused an encephalopathy, " he said. And the symptoms

> that come

> with that " fall within the broad rubric of autism. "

>

> And there are other somewhat similar cases, Golkiewicz says, that were

> decided before autism and its symptoms were more clearly defined. "

> See: The Associated Press,

> http://news./s/ap/20080307/ap_on_he_me/autism_vaccines_analysis

>

> One such vaccine case involved triplets. In 2002, the Hiatts

> received a

> settlement from the National Vaccine Injuries Compensation Program:

> " The

> government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

> injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

>

> In their request to keep the documents secret, the Bush

> Administration is

> trying to shield not only vaccine manufacturers, but also public

> health

> agencies whose vaccine policies are under fire. Undoubtedly, the

> Administration believes the sealed documents contain evidence

> undermining

> its policies. We can pretty much be certain that If the documents

> supported

> current vaccination policies, they would be made public. The move to

> keep

> the documents concealed raises well-founded suspicions that the

> documents

> contain damaging evidence about the vaccines' hazardous effects.

>

> Contact: Vera Hassner Sharav

> veracare@...

> 212-595-8974

>

> http://winnipeg.indymedia.org/item.php?12522S

> Winnipeg Independent Media Centre

> US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

> by Todd Zwillich

> Thursday, March 6th

>

> WASHINGTON - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked a federal

> court

> on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases of autism

> allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.

>

> Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court

> of

> Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their

> automatic disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to

> decide when and how the material should be released.

>

> Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged

> that

> the government was trying to keep the information out of civil courts,

> where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against

> vaccine

> manufacturers.

>

> The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought by

> the

> families of autistic children. The suits charge that the

> measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a

> mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal, can cause

> neurological damage leading to autism.

>

> Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a

> special

> federal " vaccine court " before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The court

> was set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help

> protect

> vaccine makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by

> juries in state civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their

> cases to

> state courts if they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they

> don't

> accept the court's judgment.

>

> The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court.

> Because

> it received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and

> evidence-gathering is going on for all of the cases as a block.

>

> Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent plaintiffs

> who

> later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated

> during the required vaccine court proceedings.

>

> Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of

> the

> families of injured children because it would require them to incur

> the

> time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.

>

> " Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would be

> to

> compensate lawyers, " said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher Boland

> Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of

> autistic

> children who received the MMR vaccine.

>

> Kim accused the government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy

> over

> these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he

> said

> were " the only entities " that would benefit if the documents are

> sealed.

>

> While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in individual

> vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like

> the

> one generating evidence in the autism cases.

>

> Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they

> requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the

> Secretary

> of Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be

> released to the public.

>

> Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let

> plaintiffs use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would

> confer an advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal

> compensation.

>

> " There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are

> enhanced rights in a subsequent civil action, " Matanoski said of the

> plaintiffs. " They're still going to have unfettered use within the

> proceedings. "

>

> Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to seal

> the court documents, but did say that his decision would be " very

> prompt. "

>

> -------------

>

> Pensacola News Journal

> Published - March, 7, 2008

> Autism, vaccine link generates community buzz

> Kate S. Peabody

> kpeabody@...

>

> A decision by federal health officials that childhood vaccines

> worsened a

> rare, underlying disorder that ultimately led to autism-like

> symptoms in a

> Georgia girl is generating a lot of buzz among parents of children

> with the

> disorder.

>

> The ruling on the 9-year-old girl is narrowly worded, and the

> government has

> not conceded that childhood shots can cause autism on a widespread

> basis.

>

> Nevertheless, parents and advocates for autistic children see the

> decision

> as another step in that direction.

> " It's a beginning,'' said Conway, a Boston lawyer representing

> more

> than 1,200 of the nearly 5,000 families nationwide seeking

> compensation for

> autism or other developmental disabilities they blame on vaccines

> and a

> mercury-based preservative, thimerosal.

>

> " Each case is going to have to be proved on its individual merits.

> But it

> shows to me that the government has conceded that its biologically

> plausible

> for a vaccine to cause these injuries.''

>

> In 1999, Misty and Phil Hiatt of Pensacola, parents of 10-year-old

> triplets,

> were among the first to assert a link between childhood vaccines and

> autism-like symptoms.

> Misty Hiatt said she and her husband, a professional baseball player

> for 16

> years, saw their babies' lives change dramatically after they received

> routine immunizations at 14 months. She said daughter Madison began

> suffering from severe autism-like symptoms. Daughters and

> Mackenzie

> also were affected, though less severely.

>

> In 2002, the Hiatts received a settlement from the Nation- al Vaccine

> Injuries Compensation Program, a fund Congress set up to pay

> children in-

> jured by vaccines and to protect makers from damages as a way to

> help ensure

> an adequate vaccine supply. Since the fund started in 1988, it has

> paid

> about 950 claims - none for autism but some for autism-like

> symptoms. " The

> government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

> injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

>

> Pensacola resident n Irby, whose 15-year-old son, , was

> diagnosed

> with autism at 20 months old, is also convinced of the connection

> between

> vaccines and autism.Irby is not swayed by re-ports from the Centers

> for Di-

> sease Control, the Food and Drug Administration and the American

> Pediatric

> Association that there's no connection between thimerosal and autism.

>

> " A small group of scientists -- about 20 or 30 -- at major

> universities have

> published dozens of studies to show the opposite, " he said.

>

> Irby, owner of Irby Engineering and Construction Inc., said his son

> was

> develop- ing normally until he re-ceived his shots.

> The statute of limitations has long passed for Irby to pursue any

> recourse,

> but he said some other parents of more recently diagnosed children

> may want

> to pursue legal action. " Our concern is to get the in- formation out

> there, "

> he said.

>

> In the Georgia case, the girl has a disorder involving her

> mitochondria, the

> energy factories of cells.

>

> The disorder - which can be present at birth from an inherited gene or

> acquired later in life - impairs cells' ability to use nutrients and

> of- ten

> causes problems in brain functioning. It can lead to delays in

> walking and

> talking.

>

> Federal officials say the law bars them from discussing the case or

> releasing documents without the family's permission. However, the

> Associated

> Press obtained a copy of the concession by U.S. Department of Health

> and

> Human Services officials.

>

> According to the document, five vaccines the girl received on one

> day in

> 2000 aggravated her mitochondrial condition, predisposing her to

> metabolic

> problems that manifested as worsening brain function " with features of

> autism spectrum disorder. " In the 1990s, the definition of autism was

> expanded to take in a group of milder related conditions, which are

> known as

> autism spectrum disorders.

>

> In Escambia and Santa counties, about 2,500 people have the

> disorder,

> said Byram, executive director of Autism Society of the

> Panhandle in

> Pensacola.

> She expects many local residents to be interested in the Georgia case.

> Other local autism experts expect the case to give some parents

> pause about

> immunizing their children.

>

> The Associated Press contributed to this report.

>

> FAIR USE NOTICE: This may contain copyrighted (C ) material the use

> of which

> has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner.

> Such

> material is made available for educational purposes, to advance

> understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral,

> ethical, and

> social justice issues, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a

> 'fair

> use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17

> U.S.C.

> section 107 of the US Copyright Law. This material is distributed

> without

> profit.

>

March 13, 2008

ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION

Promoting Openness, Full Disclosure, and Accountability

http://www.ahrp.org and http://ahrp.blogspot.com

FYI

A news report from Winnipeg states that the Administration is seeking

to

conceal vaccine-autism related evidence gathered in preparation for the

vaccine court proceedings from the public.

Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children accused the

government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers who were

trying

to keep the information out of civil courts,

where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against them.

The Hannah Poling case is NOT the first vaccine-autism case to be

settled by

the government in favor of plaintiffs.

According to Golkiewicz, chief special master for the U.S. Court

of

Federal Claims, who oversees the special " vaccine court " which rules on

requests for payments from the vaccine injury fund:

" The case may not be a first. Years ago, actually, I had a case, before

we

understood or knew the implications of autism, that the vaccine injured

the

child's brain caused an encephalopathy, " he said. And the symptoms that

come

with that " fall within the broad rubric of autism. "

And there are other somewhat similar cases, Golkiewicz says, that were

decided before autism and its symptoms were more clearly defined. "

See: The Associated Press,

http://news./s/ap/20080307/ap_on_he_me/autism_vaccines_analysis

One such vaccine case involved triplets. In 2002, the Hiatts received a

settlement from the National Vaccine Injuries Compensation Program:

" The

government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

In their request to keep the documents secret, the Bush Administration

is

trying to shield not only vaccine manufacturers, but also public health

agencies whose vaccine policies are under fire. Undoubtedly, the

Administration believes the sealed documents contain evidence

undermining

its policies. We can pretty much be certain that If the documents

supported

current vaccination policies, they would be made public. The move to

keep

the documents concealed raises well-founded suspicions that the

documents

contain damaging evidence about the vaccines' hazardous effects.

Contact: Vera Hassner Sharav

veracare@...

212-595-8974

http://winnipeg.indymedia.org/item.php?12522S

Winnipeg Independent Media Centre

US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

by Todd Zwillich

Thursday, March 6th

WASHINGTON - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked a federal

court

on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases of autism

allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.

Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court of

Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their

automatic disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to

decide when and how the material should be released.

Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged

that

the government was trying to keep the information out of civil courts,

where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against

vaccine

manufacturers.

The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought by

the

families of autistic children. The suits charge that the

measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a

mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal, can cause

neurological damage leading to autism.

Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a

special

federal " vaccine court " before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The court

was set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect

vaccine makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by

juries in state civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases

to

state courts if they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't

accept the court's judgment.

The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. Because

it received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and

evidence-gathering is going on for all of the cases as a block.

Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent plaintiffs

who

later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated

during the required vaccine court proceedings.

Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of the

families of injured children because it would require them to incur the

time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.

" Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would be to

compensate lawyers, " said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher Boland

Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of autistic

children who received the MMR vaccine.

Kim accused the government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he said

were " the only entities " that would benefit if the documents are

sealed.

While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in individual

vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like the

one generating evidence in the autism cases.

Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they

requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the

Secretary

of Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be

released to the public.

Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let

plaintiffs use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would

confer an advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal

compensation.

" There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are

enhanced rights in a subsequent civil action, " Matanoski said of the

plaintiffs. " They're still going to have unfettered use within the

proceedings. "

Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to seal

the court documents, but did say that his decision would be " very

prompt. "

-------------

Pensacola News Journal

Published - March, 7, 2008

Autism, vaccine link generates community buzz

Kate S. Peabody

kpeabody@...

A decision by federal health officials that childhood vaccines worsened

a

rare, underlying disorder that ultimately led to autism-like symptoms

in a

Georgia girl is generating a lot of buzz among parents of children with

the

disorder.

The ruling on the 9-year-old girl is narrowly worded, and the

government has

not conceded that childhood shots can cause autism on a widespread

basis.

Nevertheless, parents and advocates for autistic children see the

decision

as another step in that direction.

" It's a beginning,'' said Conway, a Boston lawyer representing

more

than 1,200 of the nearly 5,000 families nationwide seeking compensation

for

autism or other developmental disabilities they blame on vaccines and a

mercury-based preservative, thimerosal.

" Each case is going to have to be proved on its individual merits. But

it

shows to me that the government has conceded that its biologically

plausible

for a vaccine to cause these injuries.''

In 1999, Misty and Phil Hiatt of Pensacola, parents of 10-year-old

triplets,

were among the first to assert a link between childhood vaccines and

autism-like symptoms.

Misty Hiatt said she and her husband, a professional baseball player

for 16

years, saw their babies' lives change dramatically after they received

routine immunizations at 14 months. She said daughter Madison began

suffering from severe autism-like symptoms. Daughters and

Mackenzie

also were affected, though less severely.

In 2002, the Hiatts received a settlement from the Nation- al Vaccine

Injuries Compensation Program, a fund Congress set up to pay children

in-

jured by vaccines and to protect makers from damages as a way to help

ensure

an adequate vaccine supply. Since the fund started in 1988, it has paid

about 950 claims - none for autism but some for autism-like symptoms.

" The

government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

Pensacola resident n Irby, whose 15-year-old son, , was

diagnosed

with autism at 20 months old, is also convinced of the connection

between

vaccines and autism.Irby is not swayed by re-ports from the Centers for

Di-

sease Control, the Food and Drug Administration and the American

Pediatric

Association that there's no connection between thimerosal and autism.

" A small group of scientists -- about 20 or 30 -- at major universities

have

published dozens of studies to show the opposite, " he said.

Irby, owner of Irby Engineering and Construction Inc., said his son was

develop- ing normally until he re-ceived his shots.

The statute of limitations has long passed for Irby to pursue any

recourse,

but he said some other parents of more recently diagnosed children may

want

to pursue legal action. " Our concern is to get the in- formation out

there, "

he said.

In the Georgia case, the girl has a disorder involving her

mitochondria, the

energy factories of cells.

The disorder - which can be present at birth from an inherited gene or

acquired later in life - impairs cells' ability to use nutrients and

of- ten

causes problems in brain functioning. It can lead to delays in walking

and

talking.

Federal officials say the law bars them from discussing the case or

releasing documents without the family's permission. However, the

Associated

Press obtained a copy of the concession by U.S. Department of Health

and

Human Services officials.

According to the document, five vaccines the girl received on one day

in

2000 aggravated her mitochondrial condition, predisposing her to

metabolic

problems that manifested as worsening brain function " with features of

autism spectrum disorder. " In the 1990s, the definition of autism was

expanded to take in a group of milder related conditions, which are

known as

autism spectrum disorders.

In Escambia and Santa counties, about 2,500 people have the

disorder,

said Byram, executive director of Autism Society of the Panhandle

in

Pensacola.

She expects many local residents to be interested in the Georgia case.

Other local autism experts expect the case to give some parents pause

about

immunizing their children.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This may contain copyrighted (C ) material the use of

which

has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner.

Such

material is made available for educational purposes, to advance

understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical,

and

social justice issues, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a

'fair

use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17

U.S.C.

section 107 of the US Copyright Law. This material is distributed

without

profit.

March 13, 2008

ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION

Promoting Openness, Full Disclosure, and Accountability

http://www.ahrp.org and http://ahrp.blogspot.com

FYI

A news report from Winnipeg states that the Administration is seeking

to

conceal vaccine-autism related evidence gathered in preparation for the

vaccine court proceedings from the public.

Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children accused the

government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers who were

trying

to keep the information out of civil courts,

where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against them.

The Hannah Poling case is NOT the first vaccine-autism case to be

settled by

the government in favor of plaintiffs.

According to Golkiewicz, chief special master for the U.S. Court

of

Federal Claims, who oversees the special " vaccine court " which rules on

requests for payments from the vaccine injury fund:

" The case may not be a first. Years ago, actually, I had a case, before

we

understood or knew the implications of autism, that the vaccine injured

the

child's brain caused an encephalopathy, " he said. And the symptoms that

come

with that " fall within the broad rubric of autism. "

And there are other somewhat similar cases, Golkiewicz says, that were

decided before autism and its symptoms were more clearly defined. "

See: The Associated Press,

http://news./s/ap/20080307/ap_on_he_me/autism_vaccines_analysis

One such vaccine case involved triplets. In 2002, the Hiatts received a

settlement from the National Vaccine Injuries Compensation Program:

" The

government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

In their request to keep the documents secret, the Bush Administration

is

trying to shield not only vaccine manufacturers, but also public health

agencies whose vaccine policies are under fire. Undoubtedly, the

Administration believes the sealed documents contain evidence

undermining

its policies. We can pretty much be certain that If the documents

supported

current vaccination policies, they would be made public. The move to

keep

the documents concealed raises well-founded suspicions that the

documents

contain damaging evidence about the vaccines' hazardous effects.

Contact: Vera Hassner Sharav

veracare@...

212-595-8974

http://winnipeg.indymedia.org/item.php?12522S

Winnipeg Independent Media Centre

US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

by Todd Zwillich

Thursday, March 6th

WASHINGTON - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked a federal

court

on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases of autism

allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.

Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court of

Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their

automatic disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to

decide when and how the material should be released.

Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged

that

the government was trying to keep the information out of civil courts,

where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against

vaccine

manufacturers.

The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought by

the

families of autistic children. The suits charge that the

measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a

mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal, can cause

neurological damage leading to autism.

Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a

special

federal " vaccine court " before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The court

was set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect

vaccine makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by

juries in state civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases

to

state courts if they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't

accept the court's judgment.

The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. Because

it received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and

evidence-gathering is going on for all of the cases as a block.

Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent plaintiffs

who

later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated

during the required vaccine court proceedings.

Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of the

families of injured children because it would require them to incur the

time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.

" Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would be to

compensate lawyers, " said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher Boland

Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of autistic

children who received the MMR vaccine.

Kim accused the government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he said

were " the only entities " that would benefit if the documents are

sealed.

While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in individual

vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like the

one generating evidence in the autism cases.

Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they

requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the

Secretary

of Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be

released to the public.

Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let

plaintiffs use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would

confer an advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal

compensation.

" There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are

enhanced rights in a subsequent civil action, " Matanoski said of the

plaintiffs. " They're still going to have unfettered use within the

proceedings. "

Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to seal

the court documents, but did say that his decision would be " very

prompt. "

-------------

Pensacola News Journal

Published - March, 7, 2008

Autism, vaccine link generates community buzz

Kate S. Peabody

kpeabody@...

A decision by federal health officials that childhood vaccines worsened

a

rare, underlying disorder that ultimately led to autism-like symptoms

in a

Georgia girl is generating a lot of buzz among parents of children with

the

disorder.

The ruling on the 9-year-old girl is narrowly worded, and the

government has

not conceded that childhood shots can cause autism on a widespread

basis.

Nevertheless, parents and advocates for autistic children see the

decision

as another step in that direction.

" It's a beginning,'' said Conway, a Boston lawyer representing

more

than 1,200 of the nearly 5,000 families nationwide seeking compensation

for

autism or other developmental disabilities they blame on vaccines and a

mercury-based preservative, thimerosal.

" Each case is going to have to be proved on its individual merits. But

it

shows to me that the government has conceded that its biologically

plausible

for a vaccine to cause these injuries.''

In 1999, Misty and Phil Hiatt of Pensacola, parents of 10-year-old

triplets,

were among the first to assert a link between childhood vaccines and

autism-like symptoms.

Misty Hiatt said she and her husband, a professional baseball player

for 16

years, saw their babies' lives change dramatically after they received

routine immunizations at 14 months. She said daughter Madison began

suffering from severe autism-like symptoms. Daughters and

Mackenzie

also were affected, though less severely.

In 2002, the Hiatts received a settlement from the Nation- al Vaccine

Injuries Compensation Program, a fund Congress set up to pay children

in-

jured by vaccines and to protect makers from damages as a way to help

ensure

an adequate vaccine supply. Since the fund started in 1988, it has paid

about 950 claims - none for autism but some for autism-like symptoms.

" The

government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

Pensacola resident n Irby, whose 15-year-old son, , was

diagnosed

with autism at 20 months old, is also convinced of the connection

between

vaccines and autism.Irby is not swayed by re-ports from the Centers for

Di-

sease Control, the Food and Drug Administration and the American

Pediatric

Association that there's no connection between thimerosal and autism.

" A small group of scientists -- about 20 or 30 -- at major universities

have

published dozens of studies to show the opposite, " he said.

Irby, owner of Irby Engineering and Construction Inc., said his son was

develop- ing normally until he re-ceived his shots.

The statute of limitations has long passed for Irby to pursue any

recourse,

but he said some other parents of more recently diagnosed children may

want

to pursue legal action. " Our concern is to get the in- formation out

there, "

he said.

In the Georgia case, the girl has a disorder involving her

mitochondria, the

energy factories of cells.

The disorder - which can be present at birth from an inherited gene or

acquired later in life - impairs cells' ability to use nutrients and

of- ten

causes problems in brain functioning. It can lead to delays in walking

and

talking.

Federal officials say the law bars them from discussing the case or

releasing documents without the family's permission. However, the

Associated

Press obtained a copy of the concession by U.S. Department of Health

and

Human Services officials.

According to the document, five vaccines the girl received on one day

in

2000 aggravated her mitochondrial condition, predisposing her to

metabolic

problems that manifested as worsening brain function " with features of

autism spectrum disorder. " In the 1990s, the definition of autism was

expanded to take in a group of milder related conditions, which are

known as

autism spectrum disorders.

In Escambia and Santa counties, about 2,500 people have the

disorder,

said Byram, executive director of Autism Society of the Panhandle

in

Pensacola.

She expects many local residents to be interested in the Georgia case.

Other local autism experts expect the case to give some parents pause

about

immunizing their children.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This may contain copyrighted (C ) material the use of

which

has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner.

Such

material is made available for educational purposes, to advance

understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical,

and

social justice issues, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a

'fair

use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17

U.S.C.

section 107 of the US Copyright Law. This material is distributed

without

profit.

March 13, 2008

ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION

Promoting Openness, Full Disclosure, and Accountability

http://www.ahrp.org and http://ahrp.blogspot.com

FYI

A news report from Winnipeg states that the Administration is seeking

to

conceal vaccine-autism related evidence gathered in preparation for the

vaccine court proceedings from the public.

Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children accused the

government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers who were

trying

to keep the information out of civil courts,

where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against them.

The Hannah Poling case is NOT the first vaccine-autism case to be

settled by

the government in favor of plaintiffs.

According to Golkiewicz, chief special master for the U.S. Court

of

Federal Claims, who oversees the special " vaccine court " which rules on

requests for payments from the vaccine injury fund:

" The case may not be a first. Years ago, actually, I had a case, before

we

understood or knew the implications of autism, that the vaccine injured

the

child's brain caused an encephalopathy, " he said. And the symptoms that

come

with that " fall within the broad rubric of autism. "

And there are other somewhat similar cases, Golkiewicz says, that were

decided before autism and its symptoms were more clearly defined. "

See: The Associated Press,

http://news./s/ap/20080307/ap_on_he_me/autism_vaccines_analysis

One such vaccine case involved triplets. In 2002, the Hiatts received a

settlement from the National Vaccine Injuries Compensation Program:

" The

government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

In their request to keep the documents secret, the Bush Administration

is

trying to shield not only vaccine manufacturers, but also public health

agencies whose vaccine policies are under fire. Undoubtedly, the

Administration believes the sealed documents contain evidence

undermining

its policies. We can pretty much be certain that If the documents

supported

current vaccination policies, they would be made public. The move to

keep

the documents concealed raises well-founded suspicions that the

documents

contain damaging evidence about the vaccines' hazardous effects.

Contact: Vera Hassner Sharav

veracare@...

212-595-8974

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Winnipeg Independent Media Centre

US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

by Todd Zwillich

Thursday, March 6th

WASHINGTON - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked a federal

court

on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases of autism

allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.

Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court of

Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their

automatic disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to

decide when and how the material should be released.

Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged

that

the government was trying to keep the information out of civil courts,

where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against

vaccine

manufacturers.

The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought by

the

families of autistic children. The suits charge that the

measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a

mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal, can cause

neurological damage leading to autism.

Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a

special

federal " vaccine court " before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The court

was set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect

vaccine makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by

juries in state civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases

to

state courts if they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't

accept the court's judgment.

The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. Because

it received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and

evidence-gathering is going on for all of the cases as a block.

Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent plaintiffs

who

later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated

during the required vaccine court proceedings.

Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of the

families of injured children because it would require them to incur the

time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.

" Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would be to

compensate lawyers, " said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher Boland

Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of autistic

children who received the MMR vaccine.

Kim accused the government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he said

were " the only entities " that would benefit if the documents are

sealed.

While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in individual

vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like the

one generating evidence in the autism cases.

Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they

requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the

Secretary

of Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be

released to the public.

Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let

plaintiffs use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would

confer an advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal

compensation.

" There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are

enhanced rights in a subsequent civil action, " Matanoski said of the

plaintiffs. " They're still going to have unfettered use within the

proceedings. "

Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to seal

the court documents, but did say that his decision would be " very

prompt. "

-------------

Pensacola News Journal

Published - March, 7, 2008

Autism, vaccine link generates community buzz

Kate S. Peabody

kpeabody@...

A decision by federal health officials that childhood vaccines worsened

a

rare, underlying disorder that ultimately led to autism-like symptoms

in a

Georgia girl is generating a lot of buzz among parents of children with

the

disorder.

The ruling on the 9-year-old girl is narrowly worded, and the

government has

not conceded that childhood shots can cause autism on a widespread

basis.

Nevertheless, parents and advocates for autistic children see the

decision

as another step in that direction.

" It's a beginning,'' said Conway, a Boston lawyer representing

more

than 1,200 of the nearly 5,000 families nationwide seeking compensation

for

autism or other developmental disabilities they blame on vaccines and a

mercury-based preservative, thimerosal.

" Each case is going to have to be proved on its individual merits. But

it

shows to me that the government has conceded that its biologically

plausible

for a vaccine to cause these injuries.''

In 1999, Misty and Phil Hiatt of Pensacola, parents of 10-year-old

triplets,

were among the first to assert a link between childhood vaccines and

autism-like symptoms.

Misty Hiatt said she and her husband, a professional baseball player

for 16

years, saw their babies' lives change dramatically after they received

routine immunizations at 14 months. She said daughter Madison began

suffering from severe autism-like symptoms. Daughters and

Mackenzie

also were affected, though less severely.

In 2002, the Hiatts received a settlement from the Nation- al Vaccine

Injuries Compensation Program, a fund Congress set up to pay children

in-

jured by vaccines and to protect makers from damages as a way to help

ensure

an adequate vaccine supply. Since the fund started in 1988, it has paid

about 950 claims - none for autism but some for autism-like symptoms.

" The

government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

Pensacola resident n Irby, whose 15-year-old son, , was

diagnosed

with autism at 20 months old, is also convinced of the connection

between

vaccines and autism.Irby is not swayed by re-ports from the Centers for

Di-

sease Control, the Food and Drug Administration and the American

Pediatric

Association that there's no connection between thimerosal and autism.

" A small group of scientists -- about 20 or 30 -- at major universities

have

published dozens of studies to show the opposite, " he said.

Irby, owner of Irby Engineering and Construction Inc., said his son was

develop- ing normally until he re-ceived his shots.

The statute of limitations has long passed for Irby to pursue any

recourse,

but he said some other parents of more recently diagnosed children may

want

to pursue legal action. " Our concern is to get the in- formation out

there, "

he said.

In the Georgia case, the girl has a disorder involving her

mitochondria, the

energy factories of cells.

The disorder - which can be present at birth from an inherited gene or

acquired later in life - impairs cells' ability to use nutrients and

of- ten

causes problems in brain functioning. It can lead to delays in walking

and

talking.

Federal officials say the law bars them from discussing the case or

releasing documents without the family's permission. However, the

Associated

Press obtained a copy of the concession by U.S. Department of Health

and

Human Services officials.

According to the document, five vaccines the girl received on one day

in

2000 aggravated her mitochondrial condition, predisposing her to

metabolic

problems that manifested as worsening brain function " with features of

autism spectrum disorder. " In the 1990s, the definition of autism was

expanded to take in a group of milder related conditions, which are

known as

autism spectrum disorders.

In Escambia and Santa counties, about 2,500 people have the

disorder,

said Byram, executive director of Autism Society of the Panhandle

in

Pensacola.

She expects many local residents to be interested in the Georgia case.

Other local autism experts expect the case to give some parents pause

about

immunizing their children.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This may contain copyrighted (C ) material the use of

which

has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner.

Such

material is made available for educational purposes, to advance

understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical,

and

social justice issues, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a

'fair

use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17

U.S.C.

section 107 of the US Copyright Law. This material is distributed

without

profit.

March 13, 2008

ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION

Promoting Openness, Full Disclosure, and Accountability

http://www.ahrp.org and http://ahrp.blogspot.com

FYI

A news report from Winnipeg states that the Administration is seeking

to

conceal vaccine-autism related evidence gathered in preparation for the

vaccine court proceedings from the public.

Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children accused the

government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers who were

trying

to keep the information out of civil courts,

where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against them.

The Hannah Poling case is NOT the first vaccine-autism case to be

settled by

the government in favor of plaintiffs.

According to Golkiewicz, chief special master for the U.S. Court

of

Federal Claims, who oversees the special " vaccine court " which rules on

requests for payments from the vaccine injury fund:

" The case may not be a first. Years ago, actually, I had a case, before

we

understood or knew the implications of autism, that the vaccine injured

the

child's brain caused an encephalopathy, " he said. And the symptoms that

come

with that " fall within the broad rubric of autism. "

And there are other somewhat similar cases, Golkiewicz says, that were

decided before autism and its symptoms were more clearly defined. "

See: The Associated Press,

http://news./s/ap/20080307/ap_on_he_me/autism_vaccines_analysis

One such vaccine case involved triplets. In 2002, the Hiatts received a

settlement from the National Vaccine Injuries Compensation Program:

" The

government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

In their request to keep the documents secret, the Bush Administration

is

trying to shield not only vaccine manufacturers, but also public health

agencies whose vaccine policies are under fire. Undoubtedly, the

Administration believes the sealed documents contain evidence

undermining

its policies. We can pretty much be certain that If the documents

supported

current vaccination policies, they would be made public. The move to

keep

the documents concealed raises well-founded suspicions that the

documents

contain damaging evidence about the vaccines' hazardous effects.

Contact: Vera Hassner Sharav

veracare@...

212-595-8974

http://winnipeg.indymedia.org/item.php?12522S

Winnipeg Independent Media Centre

US Government Asks Court to Seal Vaccine Records

by Todd Zwillich

Thursday, March 6th

WASHINGTON - Attorneys for the Bush Administration asked a federal

court

on Monday to order that documents on hundreds of cases of autism

allegedly caused by childhood vaccines be kept from the public.

Department of Justice lawyers asked a special master in the US Court of

Federal Claims to seal the documents, arguing that allowing their

automatic disclosure would take away the right of federal agencies to

decide when and how the material should be released.

Attorneys for the families of hundreds of autistic children charged

that

the government was trying to keep the information out of civil courts,

where juries might be convinced to award large judgments against

vaccine

manufacturers.

The court is currently hearing approximately 1,000 claims brought by

the

families of autistic children. The suits charge that the

measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which until recently included a

mercury-containing preservative known as thimerosal, can cause

neurological damage leading to autism.

Federal law requires suits against vaccine makers to go before a

special

federal " vaccine court " before any civil lawsuit is allowed. The court

was set up by Congress to speed compensation claims and to help protect

vaccine makers from having to pay large punitive awards decided by

juries in state civil courts. Plaintiffs are free to take their cases

to

state courts if they lose in the federal vaccine court or if they don't

accept the court's judgment.

The current 1,000 or so autism cases are unusual for the court. Because

it received so many claims, much of the fact-finding and

evidence-gathering is going on for all of the cases as a block.

Monday's request by the Bush Administration would prevent plaintiffs

who

later go to civil court from using some relevant evidence generated

during the required vaccine court proceedings.

Plaintiffs' attorneys said that the order amounted to punishment of the

families of injured children because it would require them to incur the

time and expense of regenerating evidence for a civil suit.

" Wouldn't it be a shame if at the end of the day our policy would be to

compensate lawyers, " said Jeff Kim, an attorney with Gallagher Boland

Meiburger & Brosnan. The firm represents about 400 families of autistic

children who received the MMR vaccine.

Kim accused the government of trying to lower " a shroud of secrecy over

these documents " in order to protect vaccine manufacturers, who he said

were " the only entities " that would benefit if the documents are

sealed.

While federal law clearly seals most documents generated in individual

vaccine cases, it has never been applied to a block proceeding like the

one generating evidence in the autism cases.

Administration lawyers told Special Master Hastings that they

requested the seal in order to preserve the legal right of the

Secretary

of Health and Human Services to decide when vaccine evidence can be

released to the public.

Justice Department attorney Matanoski argued that to let

plaintiffs use the vaccine court evidence in a later civil suit would

confer an advantage on plaintiffs who chose to forgo federal

compensation.

" There is no secret here. What the petitioners are arguing for are

enhanced rights in a subsequent civil action, " Matanoski said of the

plaintiffs. " They're still going to have unfettered use within the

proceedings. "

Hastings would not say when he would issue a ruling on whether to seal

the court documents, but did say that his decision would be " very

prompt. "

-------------

Pensacola News Journal

Published - March, 7, 2008

Autism, vaccine link generates community buzz

Kate S. Peabody

kpeabody@...

A decision by federal health officials that childhood vaccines worsened

a

rare, underlying disorder that ultimately led to autism-like symptoms

in a

Georgia girl is generating a lot of buzz among parents of children with

the

disorder.

The ruling on the 9-year-old girl is narrowly worded, and the

government has

not conceded that childhood shots can cause autism on a widespread

basis.

Nevertheless, parents and advocates for autistic children see the

decision

as another step in that direction.

" It's a beginning,'' said Conway, a Boston lawyer representing

more

than 1,200 of the nearly 5,000 families nationwide seeking compensation

for

autism or other developmental disabilities they blame on vaccines and a

mercury-based preservative, thimerosal.

" Each case is going to have to be proved on its individual merits. But

it

shows to me that the government has conceded that its biologically

plausible

for a vaccine to cause these injuries.''

In 1999, Misty and Phil Hiatt of Pensacola, parents of 10-year-old

triplets,

were among the first to assert a link between childhood vaccines and

autism-like symptoms.

Misty Hiatt said she and her husband, a professional baseball player

for 16

years, saw their babies' lives change dramatically after they received

routine immunizations at 14 months. She said daughter Madison began

suffering from severe autism-like symptoms. Daughters and

Mackenzie

also were affected, though less severely.

In 2002, the Hiatts received a settlement from the Nation- al Vaccine

Injuries Compensation Program, a fund Congress set up to pay children

in-

jured by vaccines and to protect makers from damages as a way to help

ensure

an adequate vaccine supply. Since the fund started in 1988, it has paid

about 950 claims - none for autism but some for autism-like symptoms.

" The

government settled with our family and accepted responsibility for the

injury the vaccines caused my daughter, Madison, " Misty Hiatt said.

Pensacola resident n Irby, whose 15-year-old son, , was

diagnosed

with autism at 20 months old, is also convinced of the connection

between

vaccines and autism.Irby is not swayed by re-ports from the Centers for

Di-

sease Control, the Food and Drug Administration and the American

Pediatric

Association that there's no connection between thimerosal and autism.

" A small group of scientists -- about 20 or 30 -- at major universities

have

published dozens of studies to show the opposite, " he said.

Irby, owner of Irby Engineering and Construction Inc., said his son was

develop- ing normally until he re-ceived his shots.

The statute of limitations has long passed for Irby to pursue any

recourse,

but he said some other parents of more recently diagnosed children may

want

to pursue legal action. " Our concern is to get the in- formation out

there, "

he said.

In the Georgia case, the girl has a disorder involving her

mitochondria, the

energy factories of cells.

The disorder - which can be present at birth from an inherited gene or

acquired later in life - impairs cells' ability to use nutrients and

of- ten

causes problems in brain functioning. It can lead to delays in walking

and

talking.

Federal officials say the law bars them from discussing the case or

releasing documents without the family's permission. However, the

Associated

Press obtained a copy of the concession by U.S. Department of Health

and

Human Services officials.

According to the document, five vaccines the girl received on one day

in

2000 aggravated her mitochondrial condition, predisposing her to

metabolic

problems that manifested as worsening brain function " with features of

autism spectrum disorder. " In the 1990s, the definition of autism was

expanded to take in a group of milder related conditions, which are

known as

autism spectrum disorders.

In Escambia and Santa counties, about 2,500 people have the

disorder,

said Byram, executive director of Autism Society of the Panhandle

in

Pensacola.

She expects many local residents to be interested in the Georgia case.

Other local autism experts expect the case to give some parents pause

about

immunizing their children.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This may contain copyrighted (C ) material the use of

which

has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner.

Such

material is made available for educational purposes, to advance

understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical,

and

social justice issues, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a

'fair

use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17

U.S.C.

section 107 of the US Copyright Law. This material is distributed

without

profit.

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