HR 9672, the Vaccine Injury Compensation Modernization Act of 2026, updates the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program by increasing Special Masters from eight to ten, expanding vaccine coverage to include adult and pregnant women populations, shortening CDC recommendation timelines from two years to six months, increasing death compensation to $600,000, extending the statute of limitations for filing claims from three to five years, and specifically adding COVID-19 vaccines to the Vaccine Injury Table for compensation eligibility.

Why It Matters to MAHA

MAHA strongly supports this bill because it dramatically expands patient autonomy and transparency in vaccine safety by making it easier for injured individuals to seek compensation without facing artificial procedural barriers. The extension of the statute of limitations from 36 months to five years removes a barrier that prevented people with delayed injuries from accessing the program, while adding COVID-19 vaccines to the Injury Table acknowledges legitimate safety concerns that have been suppressed by regulatory groupthink. Increasing compensation caps to $600,000 reflects the real harm some individuals experience and provides meaningful recourse. Most importantly, the bill respects individual choice by ensuring that people who experience adverse events have clear pathways to recognition and compensation, which builds public trust in vaccination decisions made with full information about both benefits and real risks.