| Under the Federal Tort Claims Act and a U.S. | | | | vermin infestations and re-used medical devices |
| Supreme Court ruling over fifty years ago, | | | | objects. |
| active-duty military personnel are barred from | | | | The FTCA is broad and allows lawsuits against the |
| suing the U.S. government for injuries "incident to | | | | government for medical malpractice claims, but |
| service" even if gross negligence was the cause. | | | | the requirements for filing a suit are complicated. |
| That prohibition applies to virtually any kind of | | | | If you are a veteran and you or your family |
| injury related to military service even if the injury | | | | members were injured due to the negligence of a |
| occurred off the job or wasn't caused by military | | | | doctor or other medical personnel at a VA |
| personnel. This doctrine is known as the Feres | | | | hospital, before you can sue, you must make an |
| Doctrine and has been harshly criticized by judges | | | | administrative claim against the VA for the full |
| who have called it unconstitutional; judges are | | | | amount of damages you have suffered. You will |
| forced to dismiss lawsuits due to the Feres | | | | never be able to ask for more damages than the |
| Doctrine. The dependents of military personnel, or | | | | amount you put on the initial form unless you can |
| retired military, however, can sue the United | | | | prove the additional damages are based on |
| States government for medical malpractice | | | | evidence you couldn't have known at the time |
| committed on the dependents; so family | | | | you filed your claim. You usually need an |
| members of active duty military personnel do | | | | experienced medical malpractice lawyer to help |
| have some protection under the law, as do | | | | you through this time-consuming and difficult |
| retired military personnel. | | | | process. |
| Prohibiting military personnel from pursuing claims | | | | The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has |
| and giving doctors immunity from malpractice | | | | been rocked by accounts of deplorable medical |
| lawsuits has created an environment that is more | | | | conditions at facilities such as Walter Reed Army |
| conducive to sloppy medical practices, according | | | | Medical Center and the VA Hospital in Seattle, |
| to the current system's critics, including George | | | | Washington. Recent disclosures that veterans are |
| Washington University law professor Jonathan | | | | not getting adequate care at these facilities has |
| Turley. | | | | outraged Capitol Hill and shocked the public. In |
| Two Congressional Acts allow United States | | | | response to this outrage, three high-level |
| military dependents to seek damages for injuries | | | | Pentagon officials have stepped down. |
| sustained due to medical malpractice. Under the | | | | VA hospital inspections have found, also, that |
| Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), military | | | | staff members are not adequately supervised |
| dependents are eligible to sue the federal | | | | and are falsifying reports regarding maintenance |
| government for medical malpractice that occurred | | | | of medical equipment. Inspectors at one VA |
| at a military facility in the United States. The | | | | hospital had difficulty locating supervising physicians |
| Military Claims Act (MCA) allows them to sue the | | | | who were supposed to be present to oversee |
| government for malpractice that occurred in an | | | | residents. In Kentucky, supervising physicians |
| American military facility outside the United States. | | | | were found to have given out their computer |
| Recently, veterans' groups and others are raising | | | | passwords to resident physicians so the residents |
| concerns about the conditions in Veteran | | | | could cosign their own reports with no supervision. |
| Administration hospitals and whether veterans are | | | | Derelictions such as these are happening in our |
| receiving substandard care. Official VA inspections | | | | country's VA hospitals every day. Until the laws |
| at a Seattle Washington VA hospital and other | | | | are changed and made easier for the lay person |
| U.S. facilities have revealed unhealthy and | | | | to understand, this abuse on our nation's veterans |
| dangerous conditions such as inadequate cleaning, | | | | will continue, often going unnoticed. |