17 March 2022
Chuck Schooner
[FYI request #17129 email]
Kia ora Chuck
Your Official Information Act request, reference: GOV-016914
Your request of 28 January 2022 to the Ministry of Health was partial y transferred to ACC on 23 February
2022, to respond to the following questions under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act).
Total Number of Deaths of persons following vaccine who have either
•
The deceased next of kin/family have received compensation
•
The deceased next of kin/family have an offer in front of them for compensation
•
Amount of compensation offered to deceased - ie have these amounts changed as more people
have died, or do these offers vary based on age
•
Pro-forma non disclosure agreement and what terms the next of kin are required to accept to
receive payment
We have interpreted “
the total number of deaths of persons following vaccine” as referring to deaths
related to the COVID-19 vaccination.
We are unable to advise the exact number of, or compensation paid for, fatal claims
Between 18 February 2021 and 12 February 2022, we have received fewer than four fatal claims related to
the COVID-19 vaccine, all have been accepted. Due to the small number of fatal claims, we are unable to
release the exact number or cost paid out by ACC, to protect our clients’ privacy.
ACC takes privacy seriously
ACC does not routinely disclose claim counts fewer than four, or details pertaining to specific claims. This
limits the potential for individuals, or matters related to certain individuals from being identified.
Withholding the data in this way is necessary to protect our clients’ privacy. This decision has been made
under section 9(2)(a) of the Act. In doing so, we considered the public interest in making the information
available and determined that it does not outweigh the need to protect our clients’ privacy.
ACC can provide financial support after a death
In the event of a covered death resulting from the COVID-19 vaccine, dependants of the deceased would be
entitled to a range of financial supports, including compensation for lost income if the deceased was
working at the time of their injury. ACC also provides survivors’ grants and makes a contribution to funeral
costs. More information can be found a
t https://www.acc.co.nz/im-injured/financial-support/financial-
support-after-death/.
Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs)
Please refer to our response to you of 12 November 2021 (our ref: GOV-014681), informing you that ACC
does not require an NDA when providing compensation for a claim.
GOV-016914 Page 1 of 2
We have recently published COVID-19 vaccine injury data on our website
The data includes a breakdown of COVID-19 vaccine injury claims grouped by age and injury type for claims
lodged with ACC between 18 February 2021 (when New Zealand began COVID-19 vaccinations) and 5
February 2022. Please note that the data on the ACC website is updated on a monthly basis.
www.acc.co.nz/assets/oia-responses/covid-19-vaccination-claims-refresh-february-2022-IPA5768.pdf.
If you’re concerned about this response, please get in touch
You can email me a
t [email address].
If you are not happy with this response, you can also contact the Ombudsman via
[email address] or by phoning 0800 802 602. Information about how to make a complaint
is available
at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz
Ngā mihi
Sara Freitag
Acting Manager Official Information Act Services
Government Engagement & Support
GOV-016914 Page 2 of 2
Document Outline
