[WATCH] Thalidomide survivors to receive compensation from Maltese government

A compensation package of €3 million as a full and final settlement for Thalidomide survivors was announced by Inclusion Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli on Wednesday.

An independent medical board will determine eligibility and assess the degree of disability caused by Thalidomide, a medicine used over six decades ago that resulted in stillbirths or babies being born with deformities.

Speaking during the adjournment in parliament, Farrugia Portelli acknowledged the “tragic mistake” which occurred over six decades ago, attributing it to the obstinacy of past legislators.

“I believe this was a mistake which happened in Malta because of the stubbornness of those in this House, 61 years ago,” the minister said, adding there had been procrastination to completely ban the medicine.

Farrugia Portelli insisted it was important to focus on the open wounds that still persist within the surviving victims. 

She explained that in recent months, her ministry reached out to identify individuals who believe themselves to be victims of Thalidomide. 

“34 survivors bravely coming forward to share their harrowing experiences,” she said.

Addressing two of these survivors, who were present in the Stranger’s Gallery, Farrugia Portelli said no words could ever fully alleviate the pain, anger, and psychological trauma that has plagued their lives for decades. 

“As a member of parliament and minister, I can only commit to listen, respect, and act as your voice within the corridors of power,” she told them.

The upcoming evaluation process, to be spearheaded by an independent board consisting of medical experts, will meticulously assess each case that comes before them. 

The primary objective of this procedure is twofold: first, to establish the veracity of the claimants' status as victims of Thalidomide, and second, to determine the percentage of disability attributable to the drug. 

The compensation process and evaluation are expected to commence in the coming weeks.

“This is the government's commitment to provide closure, support, and a voice to these victims,” she concluded.

Thalidomide: 40 survivors fighting for compensation

40 survivors of the Thalidomide controversy left with limb impairments hoped to find some form of compensation as well as a monument marking the medical scandal that affected their lives.

In December, Thalidomide Survivors Association president Anatole Baldacchino told MaltaToday, he was reaching out to persons who may have been affected by the drug, developed by Grünenthal in Germany to treat prospective mothers for morning sickness.

Deployed in 1958, the first infants to be impacted by the effects of Thalidomide were those of the employees of the manufacturer. 

At first, Grünenthal insisted that stillbirths and impairments on infants were attributed to natural causes. After Distillers UK acquired the licence to produce and sell the drug, births in the 1960s and 1970s brought the scandal to the fore. Most recently, thalidomide survivors in Wales, amounting to around 30 individuals and mostly in their 60s, started to receive lifelong financial support.

Baldacchino said the victims range from stillborn infants or neo-natal deaths to survivors who had impairments due to Thalidomide. 

The extent of the impairment varied, which includes but not limited to, physical impairment such as short limbs.

Founded in May 2022, four of the TSA’s five founding members suffer of impairments due to Thalidomide.  Through their campaign, a public call was issued for those who believe that are thalidomide survivors. Data collected is now being analysed.