Adelaide widow whose husband died after devastating reaction to Covid vaccine wins compensation

Within days of getting a Covid vaccination shot Bruce Isaacs became paralysed from the waist down and died less than a year later.

Jan Baulderstone said it was devastating to watch her husband to go from being fit and active to wheelchair bound. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

An Adelaide widow has been awarded a six figure compensation payment in recognition that a recommended Covid vaccine caused the paralysis and eventual death of her late husband.

It is believed to be one of the most significant payments of its kind to date in South Australia, administered as part of the federal government’s “Covid-19 Vaccine Claims Scheme”.

North Brighton man Bruce Isaacs died in April 2022 less than a year after receiving an AstraZeneca shot.

He became paralysed from his waist down three days after receiving the vaccine and never regained the use of his lower body.

Speaking to the Sunday Mail, his emotional wife Janine “Jan” Baulderstone, a teacher of 50 years, said learning that the couple’s bid for compensation – launched when her husband was still alive – had been successful was bittersweet.

While not revealing exact details of the compensation win she said it was at “the higher” end of a possible payout of more than $640,000.

“It is recognition of all that we went through and provides a sense of justice … but he isn’t here … he died not knowing if we would be successful,” she said.

“We didn’t get to have the retirement we were hoping for … instead of travelling, our last months together were spent at doctor appointments and in the hospital.

“Bruce was an active and independent person, to find himself unable to walk and relying on a machine to lift him up was pretty tragic … it was a devastating situation for him (and) very frustrating.”

Ms Baulderstone, 75, said her husband, who died aged 81, deteriorated “exceptionally quickly” after receiving the vaccine at his local doctor’s surgery on May 15, 2021.

“He had the vaccination on a Saturday … by Monday he was having great difficulty walking,” she said.

Bruce Isaacs on a beach holiday several months before receiving the Covid vaccine. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

His condition worsened with his doctor ordering a CAT scan on Wednesday, urging he be taken directly to hospital when the results came back.

“By the time we got (to Calvary) … he needed a wheelchair,” the heartbroken widow says.

After many months in hospital Mr Isaacs, diagnosed with transverse myelitis, was transferred to the Neuro-rehabilitation Clinic at Flinders Medical Centre before being moved to the Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre and later allowed home, soon becoming unwell and dying from complications of pneumonia.

A chance meeting with Martin Faull, a principal at Lindbloms Lawyers at Hampstead, inspired the couple to seek compensation.

Martin Faull, a principal at Lindbloms Lawyers, fought for the late Bruce Isaacs and his wife. Picture: Supplied

Mr Faull, who specialises in personal injury and medical negligence, said it was rewarding to have helped secure the compensation.

“It will have a massive impact … it doesn’t bring her husband back but will bring financial ease and help recoup some of the costs associated with modifying their house for a wheelchair and installing lifters in the roof,” he said.

“I haven’t heard of any payouts of this significance in SA … the thresholds are tight and you are required to jump through a lot of hoops (to) to prove a direct link between the vaccine injection and the disability, or in this matter, death.”

The no-fault vaccine claims scheme, allowing Australians who experienced “a moderate or significant adverse event or injury” following a Covid vaccination was launched in December 2021, with a total of 3,805 applications made to the end of August this year.

Transverse myelitis, linked to AstraZeneca, was added as a claimable condition in April this year.

A spokeswoman for Services Australia, which administers the scheme, said while she could not provide details of maximum, minimum or average payments made, of 199 claims approved, 17 are residents of South Australia.

“The assessment process can be complex, and claims may also be reviewed independently by medical and other appropriately qualified experts,” she said.

More than 69.3 million vaccine doses have been administered Australia-wide since the vaccine rollout began in February 2021.