Court Cites Pesticide Case in Reversing Vaccine Preemption Ruling

ATLANTA - A state appeals court has applied the U.S. Supreme Court's reasoning in a landmark pesticide preemption case to reverse a trial court's decision that preempted a design defect claim brought against the manufacturers of thimerosal-containing vaccines. Ferrari v. American Home Products Corp., et al., No. A07A0306 (Ga. Ct. App.).

In a July 5 decision, the Georgia Court of Appeals held that because one reading of the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Compensation Act limits the preemptive effect on design defect claims against vaccine makers, the act cannot be said to outright preclude vaccine plaintiffs from seeking compensation in the …