Man Who Suffered Paralysis After COVID-19 Vaccine Shot Can’t Get Medical Exemption

A father of two from Canada who had a rare adverse reaction to the COVID-19 vaccine said he could not get a medical exemption despite becoming paralyzed after receiving the shot.

Ross Wightman received a dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in April 2021. Within days of his first shot, he developed excruciating back pain. The man later felt tingles on the side of his face, which developed into paralysis from the waist down. This left him unable to walk.

"It hit me hard right away. I had the paralysis from the waist down, full facial paralysis. I had trouble chewing and swallowing,” Wightman told CBC News.

Wightman was brought to the hospital where doctors diagnosed him with Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS). It is a rare disorder wherein a person’s immune system attacks the nerves. GBS can cause symptoms such as weakness in the legs, inability to move eyes, rapid heart rate and death. The disorder has a mortality rate of 4% to 7%.

Despite having adverse reactions to the AstraZeneca shot, a medical health officer who reviewed Wightman’s case said he was not eligible for a vaccine exemption as they could not prove that his GBS diagnosis was caused by vaccination. He was also told to get a second dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

As of June 2021, there had been a total of 227 cases of GBS reported among people who received the AstraZeneca shots. The European Medicines Agency listed the disorder as a possible but “very rare” side effect of COVID-19 vaccines developed by AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.

Wightman, who spent two months in the hospital, is currently undergoing physiotherapy to regain his movement and weight, a medical health officer said. He has yet to receive any support from Canada’s Vaccine Injury Support Program (VISP). The program, first launched in June 2021, provides families compensation for lost wages, injuries and death following vaccination. Each application is reviewed by a medical board.

As of November 2021, the program has received approximately 400 claims. Less than five have been reviewed and approved by the board. In Wightman’s case, his application has been passed around different caseworkers.