Reform tracker
The biggest change to the vaccine court since 1986 is on the table.
A bipartisan bill would extend the deadline, more than double the caps, add judges, and bring COVID-19 vaccines into the program. It is not law. Here is exactly what it says and where it stands.
Bill
H.R. 9672
Vaccine Injury Compensation Modernization Act of 2026
Introduced
July 14, 2026
119th Congress
Sponsors
Bipartisan
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) and Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-PA), both on House Ways and Means
| Provision | Today | Proposed | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Filing deadline | 3 years from first symptom | 5 years from first symptom | Many injuries are not diagnosed, let alone linked to a vaccine, inside three years. People lose valid claims to the calendar. |
| Pain and suffering cap | $250,000 (set in 1988) | $600,000, indexed to inflation | $250,000 in 1988 dollars is worth roughly $680,000 today. The cap has never been adjusted. |
| Death benefit | $250,000 | $600,000, indexed to inflation | Same 1988 figure, same problem. |
| Special masters | Maximum of 8 | Minimum of 10, renewable terms | Eight judges for every vaccine claim in the country is the main reason cases take years. |
| COVID-19 vaccines | CICP — administrative, 1-year deadline, no attorney fees | Moved into the vaccine court, along with RSV, shingles and dengue vaccines | CICP has compensated under 1% of COVID-19 vaccine claims. The vaccine court compensates roughly half. |
| Backlog | No plan required | HHS and DOJ must submit a resourced plan to eliminate the backlog | Accountability for the delay, not just more judges. |
| Funding | $0.75 excise tax per dose, unchanged since 1986 | Excise tax raised | Higher caps and more vaccines need a bigger trust fund. |
Source: congress.gov and the sponsors' July 2026 announcement. Inflation figure uses the BLS CPI calculator, 1988 to 2026.
What this means for you, today
If you are inside the current 3-year deadline: file now. Nothing in the bill would penalize a claim already on file, and a longer deadline does you no good if the bill dies in committee like its 2021 and 2023 predecessors.
If you are past 3 years but inside 5: talk to an attorney anyway. If the bill passes with a retroactive or transitional provision, you want to be ready the day it takes effect. If it does not, there is nothing lost.
If you have a COVID-19 vaccine injury: CICP's one-year deadline is the only one that exists today. See theCOVID-19 page.
We are not lobbying for or against this bill. We are explaining it.
Waiting on Congress is not a plan.
Find out where you stand under the law as it is. If it changes, you will already be ahead.