The nonprofit React19 has awarded over 1 million in grants to individuals injured by COVID-19 vaccines, exposing the inadequacies of the federal government’s vaccine compensation program. The U.S. Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP) has paid out only $440,000 for COVID-19-related injuries since its inception in October 2009. Meanwhile grassroots nonprofit organizations like React19’s are stepping in to do what pharmaceutical companies should be doing – helping meet the needs of vaccine-injured individuals.

REACT19 nonprofit stepping up to do what vaccine companies should be doing

REACT19, founded by individuals who experienced adverse reactions to COVID-19 vaccines, has become a lifeline for thousands awaiting recognition and financial support. React19’s efforts come as the CICP faces a surge in claims, with over 13,000 COVID-19-related submissions since the vaccine rollout — 27 times the number of claims received in the program’s first decade. Even these claims represent a small fraction of the total number of individuals injured by COVID-19 vaccines, flu vaccines, HPV vaccines, among many other injections.

React19 was established as a community for people injured by the shots in the wake of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout. “We found each other through our common struggle,” the organization’s website states. Its CareFund, which provides financial assistance for medical treatments and therapies, has now distributed over $1 million to vaccine-injured individuals.

Joel Wallskog, React19’s co-chairman and an orthopedic surgeon who was injured by Moderna’s vaccine, emphasized the significance of the milestone. “Reaching this milestone is both a testament to the generosity of our donors and a sobering reminder of the systemic failure to adequately support COVID-19 vaccine-injured patients,” Wallskog said in a press release. “We will not rest until every injured individual receives the recognition, care, and compensation they deserve.”

Government’s CICP program only compensates 3% of vaccine injury claims

The organization’s success in responding to the needs of vaccine-injured individuals contrasts sharply with the CICP’s struggles. According to a January 2024 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the CICP has reviewed only a quarter of the COVID-19 claims submitted since the vaccine rollout. Of the 13,824 total claims reviewed — including non-COVID-19 cases — only 92, or 3%, were deemed eligible for compensation. Because of its reported failures, millions of people have not bothered to waste their time begging the government for help.

The CICP, established in 2009 to compensate individuals injured by countermeasures such as vaccines, has been overwhelmed by the volume of COVID-19 claims. The GAO report cited staffing shortages, outdated information processing systems, and limited medical and scientific evidence as key obstacles to timely claim reviews.

Mary Denigan-Macauley, GAO’s Health Care Director, noted that the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which oversees the CICP, has taken steps to address these issues. “They hired and contracted additional staff to expand capacity and launched a web portal and new software to help with claim submissions and status updates,” Denigan-Macauley told The Defender. HRSA also developed a medical report template to streamline the review process.

Despite these efforts, the CICP’s progress remains slow. As of December 2024, only 3% of COVID-19 claims had been approved for compensation, with most denied due to insufficient medical records, failure to meet the standard of proof, or missed filing deadlines. The program’s strict guidelines are rigged to deny the existence of obvious vaccine injuries. To make matters worse, the compensation pool is wholly inadequate to address the real-life medical needs of individuals, especially those who lost their loved ones to the vaccines.

For individuals like Doug Cameron, an Idaho rancher who developed paralysis 10 days after receiving Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine, the delays are deeply personal. Cameron and his wife, Carla, submitted a CICP claim in January 2022. Nearly two years later, their claim remains unresolved.

“Yeah, it’s still sitting on somebody’s desk for medical review,” Carla Cameron told The Defender in November 2024. Her frustration echoes that of thousands of others awaiting answers and support.

A call for systemic reform

React19’s grants, while significant, are only a stopgap measure. The nonprofit acknowledges that its CareFund is “critically underfunded” relative to the scale of need. “There are thousands of individuals still waiting for help,” the organization stated.

React19’s milestone exposes the urgent need for systemic reform in how vaccine injuries are addressed. The CICP’s limitations—its narrow eligibility criteria, stringent deadlines, and reliance on evolving scientific evidence—have left many without recourse.

As grassroots efforts like React19 fill the void, advocates argue that the government and pharmaceutical companies must do more to support those injured by COVID-19 vaccines. “This milestone highlights the stark inadequacies of the U.S. government’s Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program,” TrialSiteNews reported. “React19’s efforts underscore the urgent need for alternative mechanisms to address systemic neglect of vaccine-injured patients.”

Until then, churches and other charitable organizations must step up to meet the needs of those who were misled by governments and pharmaceutical giants. To help out victims of vaccine injury, contact React19.org.

Sources include:

ChildrensHealthDefense.org

React19.org

OpenVAERS.com

HSRA.gov