The Countermeasure Injury Compensation Program (CICP) provides compensation to people injured by “countermeasures” that were employed by the federal government for various public health emergencies or security threats, including terrorist attacks. It is similar in some ways to the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, but the differences between the two remain substantial and important for journalists to understand, especially given that injuries from Covid vaccines still currently (as of October 2025) fall under CICP instead of VICP.
Deeper Dive
The program was established by the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act in 2005 under the Bush administration, which gives legal immunity to any companies that produce countermeasures — such as medications, vaccines, or devices — used to fight, address or manage a public health emergency or security threat. That liability shield is intended to ensure companies can produce what’s needed to meet the threat without the risk of being sued. But since the companies themselves are shielded and there is always a possibility of injury from a countermeasure, this program is intended to compensate those who may experience serious injury or death from a countermeasure.
This program is the reason that Covid vaccine manufacturers could not be sued (unless for willful misconduct) for injuries from Covid vaccines, such as the blood clots that the J&J vaccine could cause or myocarditis from the mRNA vaccines. Covid vaccines fell under CICP instead of VICP because they were not fully approved by the FDA and were instead first used under an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). Only fully FDA-approved vaccines can be included in VICP, and only after Congress passes an excise tax on them and the HHS Secretary formally adds them to the program. Importantly, Covid vaccines should have been moved to VICP after their full approval but have not, which has led to at least one lawsuit.
The HHS provides a chart comparing some of the differences between VICP and CICP. Some of the important distinctions to note are:
- The programs are funded very differently and there is subsequently a huge disparity between the funds available for VICP (an estimated $4.5 billion) versus CICP (far less, though an up-to-date figure was difficult to find).
- CICP claims must be filed within one year of the injury, compared to three years at VICP.
- The CICP benefits can be substantially less than the VICP benefits.
- Attorney fees and costs are not covered under CICP but usually are under VICP.
For more information, see the CICP FAQ, this fact sheet, the GAO’s December 2024 report “COVID-19: Information on HHS’s Medical Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program” and its summary, and these two articles providing details specifically about Covid vaccine injuries. Also see the explanations of differences of the program from two private law firms here and here.