Baseless vaccine lawsuits threaten public health | Opinion

Nearly half of Americans now believe the science on childhood vaccines is “up for debate,” even though decades of real-world evidence prove the vaccines are overwhelmingly safe. Now, trial lawyers are cashing in on that confusion, increasingly filing baseless lawsuits against vaccine manufacturers with ironclad safety records.

Invariably, those lawyers lose the cases or settle for a pittance. Yet, the mere headlines surrounding the lawsuits further undermine trust in vaccines and encourage more litigation.

It’s a vicious downward spiral for public health.

Take the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, which protects against the leading cause of cervical cancer. The vaccine cuts the risk of developing cervical cancer by up to 90 percent.

Some countries are on their way to completely eradicating HPV-related cancers, thanks in part to widespread vaccination. Australia, for instance, is set to become the first country to eliminate cervical cancer by 2035.

In the United States, the vaccine’s track record hasn’t stopped lawyers from filing lawsuits and making claims about its safety. Even when these allegations are false and the cases are dismissed, the lawsuits still undermine public trust in vaccines.

After all, most Americans don’t know the details behind these cases. They just see headlines and assume there must be some merit to the allegations if a lawsuit was filed in the first place.

That increases vaccine skepticism at a time when many Americans already feel confused about whom or what to believe. Thanks to a steady stream of misinformation, rapidly shifting guidance from federal health authorities, and statements from current Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) leadership that question long-established science, public trust in vaccines is becoming dangerously low.

Consider that four in 10 parents say they aren’t sure whether to believe common false claims about vaccines, such as the myth that the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine causes autism.

This confusion is already causing real long-term harm, as declining vaccination rates fuel outbreaks of previously eradicated diseases. In 2025, the United States reported more than 2,200 measles cases, with 11 percent of patients hospitalized and three deaths, including two children. Similar resurgences of whooping cough and other preventable illnesses have followed, bringing preventable hospitalizations and suffering.

These counterproductive lawsuits are particularly senseless because Congress created a solution to prevent them decades ago.

In the 1980s, a wave of civil lawsuits alleged that the diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus vaccine was causing serious injuries to children. Although the evidence clearly showed the vaccines were safe, the constant threat of litigation drove manufacturers to halt production altogether, putting the country at risk of a vaccine shortage.

In response, Congress established the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. The VICP allows Americans who believe they were harmed by a vaccine to file a petition with the government, present their evidence at a hearing, and receive a payout, if warranted.

The program works well for virtually everyone. In the very rare case that someone experiences an adverse event after receiving a vaccine, the VICP provides the opportunity to receive compensation while avoiding the need to mount expensive lawsuits in court where the burden of proof is far higher, and the odds of winning anything are near zero. And it prevents lawsuits from threatening innovation and vaccine production, scaring parents, and undermining public health.

Yet, some lawyers are increasingly capitalizing on vaccine skepticism and statements from current HHS leadership to bypass the VICP and pursue their clients’ cases in civil court instead. Not a single one of these suits has succeeded in court since the VICP’s creation. But despite the long odds, the prospect of winning huge damages and earning fat contingency fees incentivizes lawyers to keep filing lawsuits.

In their pursuit of a payday, trial lawyers are undermining public confidence in vaccines, thus exposing millions of young people to serious, entirely preventable diseases.

It’s time to reinforce the protections Congress wisely put in place. Frivolous lawsuits don’t deliver justice. They erode the very foundation of our public health system. Policymakers, courts, and the public must recognize this tactic for what it is, especially amid mixed messaging from HHS leadership, and reject it before more lives are needlessly put at risk.

Dr. Jerome Adams served as the 20th U.S. Surgeon General during the first Trump administration (2017-21).

The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.