People who believe they were harmed by a vaccine now have a clearer path to take part in federal research.
The National Institutes of Health released new details Oct. 19, 2026, about its vaccine injury center in Maryland, including how people can sign up to be considered for research studies.
What will the vaccine injury center study?
The center aims to bring together patients, doctors who conduct research and laboratory scientists to investigate health problems that follow vaccination or infection, according to a joint statement from the heads of the NIH and its infectious disease institute.
Its goals include understanding how vaccination or infection may have contributed to health problems and identifying factors that could make some people more vulnerable.
Researchers also plan to study long COVID, the lasting symptoms some people experience after a COVID infection, and to find the best treatments for participants’ conditions. Long COVID can include fatigue, trouble concentrating and shortness of breath that last for months.
How can people join the vaccine injury center study?
The NIH is finalizing a study plan for the vaccine injury center that will include people who visit it. The first round will enroll several hundred people with the most serious effects after vaccination or lasting symptoms after an infection.
The agency aims to launch the study before the end of the year. Officials have not said how many people the center can serve over time.
Anyone interested in enrolling can contact the NIH by email at ccopr@nih.gov or by calling the phone line the agency has set up. Study enrollment typically involves screening to determine whether a person meets the research criteria.
Where is the vaccine injury center?
It is on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland, just outside Washington. The center opened in early October in an event that was closed to the media. The NIH campus is home to one of the largest research hospitals in the country.
The health secretary and other officials disclosed the opening of the vaccine injury center on Oct. 8. At the time, they did not explain how people could enroll or whether the center had begun accepting patients.
Why is the vaccine injury center controversial?
The project comes as the health secretary, a longtime critic of vaccine safety practices, has reshaped federal vaccine policy. He overhauled a key federal vaccine advisory committee in 2025, a move that drew sharp criticism from many public health experts.
Supporters say people who report serious reactions deserve answers and better care. They argue the center can help identify who may be at greater risk.
Many doctors and scientists worry the effort could feed public doubts about vaccines that have been widely studied. Serious side effects from vaccines are rare, according to federal health data, and vaccines prevent millions of illnesses and deaths. Major medical groups continue to recommend routine vaccinations.
Are there other resources for vaccine injuries?
Yes. The federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System collects reports of health problems after vaccination. Anyone can file a report, though a report alone does not prove a vaccine caused a problem.
The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, created in 1988, offers payments to people found to have been injured by certain vaccines. That program is funded by an excise tax on vaccines and has paid out billions of dollars since it began.
People with lasting symptoms after COVID can also seek care through clinics that specialize in long COVID. Anyone with new or worsening symptoms should talk with a doctor.
As the vaccine injury center begins its work, its findings could shape both medical care and the national debate over vaccine safety.
