Coronial inquest likely for Natalie Boyce death after Covid-19 vaccine

Natalie Boyce, 21, died in hospital weeks after receiving a Moderna booster shot in 2022.

Natalie Boyce, 21, died on March 27, 2022, from myocarditis after receiving the Moderna Covid vaccine. Picture: Deborah Hamilton

The family of a young Melbourne woman who died five weeks after receiving a Covid-19 vaccine has fought a request from Moderna’s lawyers to access medical documents from four years prior to the death, as a coroner speculated a full inquest could eventuate.

Natalie Boyce, 21, fell ill after getting a Moderna vaccine in February 2022 and was admitted to the Alfred Hospital where she died in March.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration accepted that there was a link between the law student’s death and the third jab she received in February.

The government agency also recognised the death as the 14th to be linked to Covid vaccines.

Jesse Rudd, who is representing the pharmaceutical giant, told the Victorian Coroner’s Court on Wednesday that he wished to seek a report from Ms Boyce’s rheumatologist from 2018 to give to an expert the company had engaged. At the time of the report, the court heard, Ms Boyce had symptoms associated with the auto-immune disease lupus.

Coroner Catherine Fitzpatrick said she was “reluctant” to go down the path of approving the request and questioned the relevance of the report to the case.

“Can I indicate I’m going to be more and more reluctant to chase rabbits,” Ms Fitzpatrick said.

“These sort of requests will be scrutinised moving forward.”

Shannon Finnegan, who represents Boyce’s mother Deborah Hamilton, opposed the request “on the basis that it was four years prior to the deceased’s death”.

The application to seek the documents was approved.

The parties were given a deadline of October 1 to file documents to the court, with the next hearing scheduled for October 14. Ms Fitzpatrick said it “is likely this could proceed to an inquest hearing” and she expected witnesses to appear in person.

About a week after receiving her booster shot, Ms Boyce experienced vomiting and aching pain.

She later went to Mulgrave Private Hospital and was then transferred to the Alfred Hospital where she was diagnosed with fulminant myocarditis.

Ms Boyce had surgery to remove a clot and suffered a heart attack while getting an MRI.

The forensic pathologist who performed the post-mortem ruled she died from acute myocarditis infarction.

Natalie Boyce in hospital. Picture: Deborah Hamilton

In 2023, Ms Hamilton appeared before a senate hearing to present her submission in support of a bill seeking to protect unvaccinated workers from discrimination under the Fair Work Act.

“My daughter’s workplace was mandated to have all employees have the vaccine as per Daniel Andrews and the Victorian government rules. Deakin University where she was studying also mandated vaccines to attend,” she says in her submission.

“Natalie only had this vaccine to follow these rules so she could continue to work and study.”

Ms Hamilton said her daughter would be alive today if she was not “forced” to have the vaccine.

“I hold accountable the government, ATAGI (Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation), the TGA and medical professionals for her death,” Ms Hamilton wrote last year. “My family and I now have to live with this tragedy for the rest of our lives.”