BioNTech, AstraZeneca Sued For Damaging People’s Health With COVID-19 Vaccines

On Monday, the German courts will hear two civil cases against BioNTech and AstraZeneca, the manufacturers of coronavirus vaccines, for allegedly causing harm to the health of some persons.

In one of the cases, the Regional Court in Rottweil in the south-western state of Baden-Württemberg is scheduled to hear the lawsuit brought against BioNTech by a 58-year-old man for damage to his health, which he attributes to a coronavirus vaccine from German firm BioNTech.

The man accuses the pharmaceutical company of being responsible for his suffering from a massive deterioration in the vision in his right eye due to the vaccination.

He is demanding €150,000 ($163,600) in compensation for his suffering.

In addition, the court is to determine if BioNTech is obliged to compensate for possible material damages.

The Mainz-based company considers the man’s accusation to be unfounded.

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“We have carefully examined the health impairments presented by the plaintiff on the basis of all the information provided,” said a spokeswoman for the company.

The court is not expected to make a decision on Monday.

Meanwhile, an appeal hearing in a case against AstraZeneca is also starting at the same time at the Higher Regional Court in Bamberg in Bavaria.

A regional court dismissed a woman’s lawsuit against the British-Swedish pharmaceutical company six months ago. The plaintiff, however, appealed against the ruling.

The woman had sued the company for damages after severe health complaints, which she attributed to a coronavirus vaccination, but the lawsuit was dismissed because the first court could find neither a product defect nor an information error.

It is unclear whether a judgment will be handed down on Monday. The parties may, however, reach a settlement.

These two civil cases are among the first launched against the coronavirus vaccine manufacturers in Germany.