Tort law and mass immunization programs: lessons from the polio and flu episodes.

Vaccine manufacturers and their insurers were uneasy about participating in the swine flu immunization program due to cases that had expanded traditional tort doctrine to impose liability on polio vaccine manufacturers. This Article discusses the tensions between tort law and public health policy, noting the courts' apparent eagerness to compensate plaintiffs injured by their participation in mass immunization programs. Since that participation confers a benefit on the public through contributing to the prevention of communicable diseases, the authors conclude that a non-tort system of compensating victims of mass immunization programs should be considered.