Issue

Federal public emergency act—unwanted vaccination during pandemic—tort claims barred—no preemption of state constitutional claims

Summary

A county board of education and a medical provider affiliated with the county school system (defendants) were not completely shielded from suit filed by plaintiffs (a fourteen-year-old student and his mother) arising from the student being given a COVID-19 vaccine against his and his mother's wishes. The federal Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act, activated in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, provided immunity from tort injuries caused by the administration of any "covered countermeasure" during a public health emergency and, therefore, defendants were immune from plaintiffs' state law battery claims. However, contrary to the decision of the Court of Appeals, the PREP Act did not preempt plaintiffs' claims under the North Carolina constitution (regarding the mother's right to control the upbringing of her son and both plaintiffs' shared right to the son's bodily integrity), which did not constitute "claims for loss" under the Act. Therefore, the lower appellate court's opinion barring all of plaintiffs' claims was affirmed in part and reversed in part, and the matter was remanded to that court to resolve the remaining state constitutional issues raised in the parties' briefs.

Summary from the North Carolina Reports digest (official subject index). Read the opinion →