The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KCDC) plans to appeal after losing the first trial to cancel the refusal of compensation for a man in his 30s who died after receiving a Covid-19 vaccine.
However, the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee has formally requested that the agency "drop the appeal,” drawing attention to KDCA’s response.
The request came at a plenary meeting of the committee on Friday concerning the “FY 2022 Settlement” of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and the KDCA.
The meeting's main agenda was to review their financial statements, but lawmakers from the ruling and opposition parties raised questions about compensation for damages after Covid-19 vaccination.
On July 7, the Seoul Administrative Court ruled in favor of the bereaved family of the man who died after being vaccinated against Covid-19 in a lawsuit against the KCDA head to cancel the rejection of the adverse event compensation claim, and the KCDC expressed its intention to appeal.
"(The ruling) is not just one case but can affect 560 similar damage compensation applications,” KDCA Commissioner Jee Young-mee said. “More applications are expected to follow because damage compensation applications can be filed within five years."
Jee announced her intention to appeal, saying, "If the first trial court's ruling is accepted as it is, it will greatly affect immunization policies, such as vaccination standards and selection of contraindicated targets, making it difficult to implement policies.
Rep. Seo Young-seok of the opposition Democratic Party of Korea said the court's judgment clarified that it was not without causality. “It is not appropriate to go to the second trial and cause the victim the pain of dying twice," Seo said.
Rep. Kang Eun-mi of the splinter opposition Justice Party said, “Under the special situation of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government all but forced the public to get vaccinated using vaccines that have not been sufficiently tested for side effects.”
Rep. Kang added that if the government denies the first court ruling and continues to make various excuses, the people cannot trust the government.
Rep. Choi Jae-hyung of the ruling People Power Party, a former judge, said, “KDCA should judge whether to appeal the lower court ruling based on forward-looking criteria that fully reflect the vaccination process for the sake of the victims."
Despite lawmakers’ request, Commissioner Jee refused to withdraw her intention to appeal, and the committee demanded that the KCDC withdraw the appeal and improve its caution and system after reaching a bipartisan agreement.
"We will ask the KCDA to be cautious and improve the system in this matter, and make sure to include the phrase 'withdraw the appeal about the victim's victory in the first trial,'” said Rep. Shin Dong-geun, chairman of the health and welfare committee.