Reference: 20240095
8 March 2024
Chris Johnston
[FYI request #24922 email]
Dear Chris
Thank you for your Official Information Act (OIA) request, received on 15 February
2024. You requested:
I have some follow up questions:
1) Report No: T2021/2212 File Number: SH-1-6-1-3-3-13-1 "Purchasing Pfizer
vaccines for September 2021: indemnity requests for bilateral purchases" Dated
4 September 2021 states on Page 3 Item 14:
"We now have more information on ACC claims to date. As of 7 August, ACC
had received 201 treatment injury claims related to COVID-19 vaccinations. Of
these, 67 have been accepted, 39 declined and 95 are still being decided. The
majority of accepted claims are for allergic reactions (predominantly low severity
reactions resulting in treatment costs only, with a very small number of more
serious claims).
Based on the same data set (7 August [2021]), ACC has paid just under $20,000
in total for these claims with the vast majority of claims having no costs paid (note
that this amount does not include any Public Health Acute Services costs). "
Can you provide a Treasury document (or a document from another Agency in
your possession, or that refers to a document in another agency's possession).
any update to the figures for:
1a) ACC claims
1b) Public Health Acute Service costs - directly from injection, or indirectly like
from increased heart attacks/strokes or other acute circulatory conditions induced
by the vaccine
1c) Other Public Health costs - eg anything else mentioned as side effects in the
clinical trials - eg neurological issues, chronic conditions, turbo cancers and
subsequent treatment
1d) All advice and communication to solicit and acquire the ACC estimate
mentioned in the Report above - and the emails or documents received in
response.
2) A part of The Treasury's answer to R1 and R2 in my original OIA is to refer to
1 The Terrace
PO Box 3724
Wellington 6140
New Zealand
tel. +64-4-472-2733
https://treasury.govt.nz
a previous document release under OIA dated 3 April 2023.
NZ is relatively unique in the world in that we had no discernible effects from
COVID itself, were isolated with a closed border, then administered the vaccine in
a COVID free environment. So there is a fairly direct line from adverse effects to
the vaccine to government liability - with the only other variable being lock downs
(also a government action).
With respect:
i) It is Treasury's job to estimate the evolving nature of financial liabilities
ii) This seems to be a rapidly developing area where discoveries about the range
of conditions that can be statistically linked back to the administration of the
vaccine in NZ to the wider population.
Could you please provide:
2a) The latest estimate and advice to the government on the estimated liability
from the indemnity provisions since 7 August 2021 (excluding the OIA for 3 April
2023 mentioned above).
2b) Forecasts of financial costs in the Health and ACC that factor in the change in
burden of disease or rate of death since the administration of the COVID vaccine.
These forecasts may or may not have been created or modelled by The Treasury
but would have been used in establishing the budget in Health and ACC and the
expected future balance sheets.
My additional questions (alongside my Friday email) are:
- Has Health NZ or the Ministry of Health ever been asked by NZ Treasury to
provide their estimate of excess deaths or additional illness burden as a result of
these injectable products ? Please provide all such communication and
responses.
- Do the numbers in the spreadsheet link above align with NZ Treasuries
estimates (eg from ACC or elsewhere - like overseas countries). Eg are they half,
double? To answer this question you will need to download and review the
spreadsheet model.
- What is the value put on a life lost/death by NZ Treasury from an indemnity
point of view? This figure may have come from ACC and may be more than one
number (eg more for a younger person than an older person).
- Your previous response to this OIA mentioned a $10m threshold before a
certain type of announcement needed to be made. Are there any other thresholds
that are relevant in this situation? For example at a compensation value of
NZD$100,000 it would take 100 excess deaths to reach NZD$10m. If the excess
deaths were higher, the compensation higher (NZD$1m?), or a high illness
burden, the $100m-$1b becomes possible very quickly. Is $1b a notifiable event?
- For any additional thresholds, what are the required actions?
- When was the Balance Sheet item for this vaccine/injectable product liability last
revised? Please provide the documents/model/spreadsheet that supported each
revision and the General Ledger entries (or adjustment to the notes).
2
Information publicly available
The following information is also covered by your request and is publicly available:
Item
Date
Document Description
Website Address
1. 8 January 2024
COVID-19 Vaccination Claims
https://www.acc.co.nz/assets/oia
refresh - January 2024
-responses/covid-19-
vaccination-claims-refresh-
january-2024.pdf
2. 1989
Public Finance Act 1989, Section
https://www.legislation.govt.nz/a
65ZD(3)
ct/public/1989/0044/latest/DLM1
62971.html
The Treasury publishes monthly and annual financial statements of Government that
provide information on the Government’s assets and liabilities:
https://www.treasury.govt.nz/publications/financial-statements-government. Budget information is also available on the Treasury’s website:
https://www.treasury.govt.nz/publications/budgets/current-and-past-budgets. Accordingly, I have refused your request for the documents listed in the above under
section 18(d) of the OIA, as the information requested is or will soon be publicly
available.
Comments in response to specific questions
2a) The latest estimate and advice to the government on the estimated liability from the
indemnity provisions since 7 August 2021 (excluding the OIA for 3 April 2023
mentioned above).
As noted in the previous response to you regarding the estimated liability:
“In relation to the Crown’s financial liabilities under COVID-19 indemnities, officials
considered the total maximum aggregated liabilities to be unquantifiable. However, as
the potential maximum exposure of each could exceed $10 million, the Minister of
Finance presented a statement to the House of Representatives when each indemnity
was granted under section 7 65ZD(3) of the Public Finance Act 1989.”
1d) All advice and communication to solicit and acquire the ACC estimate mentioned in
the Report above - and the emails or documents received in response.
This request is refused under section 18(e) of the Act as despite reasonable efforts to
locate the communication from August 2021 it cannot be found. However, ACC’s
treatment data is publicly available as noted in the section above.
- Has Health NZ or the Ministry of Health ever been asked by NZ Treasury to provide
their estimate of excess deaths or additional illness burden as a result of these
injectable products ? Please provide all such communication and responses.
No.
3
Your previous response to this OIA mentioned a $10m threshold before a certain type
of announcement needed to be made. Are there any other thresholds that are relevant
in this situation?
No. The $10 million threshold is set out in section 65ZD(3) of the Public Finance Act
1989.
Information to be withheld
The remainder of your request is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA, as the
document alleged to contain the requested information does not exist.
Please note that this letter (with your personal details removed) and enclosed
documents may be published on the Treasury website.
This reply addresses the information you requested. You have the right to ask the
Ombudsman to investigate and review my decision.
Yours sincerely
Jess Hewat
Manager, Health and ACC
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