Military medical malpractice is medical malpractice that occurs in a military hospital or military medical facility or clinic. When a doctor or medical professional provides substandard quality care to their patient, resulting in personal injury, harm, accident, or wrongful death, this may be grounds for filing a FTCA medical malpractice claim. Patients can experience significant physical damage as well as financial loss because of medical negligence. Injuries such as a traumatic birth injury can leave service members and their families with years of emotional grief as well as financial stress.
Military personnel such as active duty military, reserved military members, retired service members or veterans, as well as their families, can experience military medical malpractice if they have received substandard medical care from a military hospital or facility. Negligent medical care at the hands of a medical practitioner can cause devastating loss and consequences as well as years of financial damage. Military personnel who have experienced medical malpractice can suffer from personal injuries such as a head injury, brain trauma, birth injury, cerebral palsy, spinal injury, paralysis, amputation, unnecessary infection, retained surgical instruments, wrong site surgery, wrongful death, and more.
The Federal Tort Claims Act, also known as the FTCA, is a federal law that provides the legal mechanism for individuals who have suffered personal injury due to the negligent or wrongful action of employees of the U.S. government (such as medical malpractice). Often times these claims originate from negligence or wrongful acts is the following categories:
In most cases an individuals, veterans, and service members are unable to sue the federal government because of the doctrine of sovereign immunity, which means:
However, because the Federal Tort Claims Act waives sovereign immunity, individuals are able to file claims for medical malpractice against the U.S. government for the negligent or wrongful acts of its employees.
If you have suffered personal injury or loss as a result of the negligence or wrongful acts of a U.S. government employee, then you may be entitled to compensation. Medical Malpractices cases against the U.S. government and its agencies can be complicated. This is why it is important to speak with a military medical malpractice lawyer that can review your case. The Archuleta Law firm provides free case evaluations here.
It depends. The Feres Doctrine may impose certain limitations on military medical malpractice claims for active duty service members. The doctrine is named after the 1950 case Feres v. The United States, which held the Government is not liable under the Federal Tort Claims Act for injuries to servicemembers where the injuries arise out of or are in the course of activity incident to service. The Feres doctrine has prevented active duty servicemembers from filing medical malpractice claims since the case was decided. However, the National Defense Authorization Act has provided an avenue for active duty servicemembers to recover damages for medical malpractice claims.
For 70 years, active duty service members have suffered injury and death as a result of medical malpractice at military hospitals, facilities, and clinics. On December 20, 2020, President Donald J. Trump signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act.
Under the National Defense Authorization Act, Active duty service members are now able to present a claim and seek compensation for medical malpractice. However, this new law comes with some significant limitations:
A statute of limitations is a time limitation that prevents a plaintiff from filing a claim after a certain amount of time has passed after suffering harm. The purpose of statutes of limitations are to encourage the prompt presentation of claims.
There is a 2-year statute of limitations under the FTCA that begins when the claim accrues. This generally begins when one knows or should have known the cause and existence of their injury. Failure to file a claim before the statute of limitations will eliminate your ability to file a Federal Tort Claim and recover damages for your injuries.
Medical malpractices cases are complicated and require a thorough investigation of medical records and medical history. This is why it is so important to speak with a FTCA lawyer right away if you or someone you know was injured as a result of medical negligence at a military or veterans hospital, clinic, or facility. Case evaluations are completed by our highly experienced staff and always free.
The statute of repose is very similar to a statute of limitations yet serves a different purpose. The statute of repose is an absolute bar to a plaintiff’s right of action after a certain amount of time has passed or the occurrence of an event that does not itself cause harm or give rise to potential claim. There are more than 30 states with statutes of repose laws for medical malpractice claims and the amount of time in each of these states can differ.
One way to argue against the applicability of a state statute of repose in a Federal Tort Claims case is by arguing Federal Preemption. When a federal law and a state law conflict with each other, the federal law “preempts” the state law. Since the FTCA does not have a statute of repose, there is an argument that a state statute of repose does not apply to FTCA cases. This issue has been visited by federal courts over the last few years with differing opinions.
In some states, the statute of repose is considered an affirmative defense. This means that if the government fails to raise it, it may be waived.
The medical malpractice attorneys at Archuleta Law Firm have over 28 years of experience handling medical malpractice claims and cases against the U.S. government. Our team is dedicated to helping our clients who have suffered from many types of injuries from military medical malpractice. Here are just a few examples of the types of malpractice cases we’ve handled:
Military service members or active duty members such as those in the Army, Navy, Air Force, as well as veterans of military branches could be affected by military medical malpractice. Here are just a few examples of military hospitals and medical facilities.
The following are a few examples of army hospitals and medical facilities:
See a list of Army Hospitals and Medical Facilities here.
Here are a few examples of Navy hospitals and medical facilities:
See a list of Navy Hospitals and Medical Facilities here.
Here are a few examples of Air Force hospitals and medical facilities:
See a list of Air Force Hospitals and Medical Facilities here.
Here are a few examples of overseas military hospitals and medical facilities:
See a list of Overseas Military Hospitals and Medical Facilities here.
If you choose to pursue an FTCA claim against the U.S. government, you should consider the following:
If you (active duty service members, reserved, or retired veterans) or your loved one has experienced medical malpractice while receiving care at a military medical center and wish to file a medical malpractice claim against the U.S. government, call us immediately at (800) 798-9529. Archuleta Law Firm offers a free consultation to evaluate your case. If you are searching for a military medical malpractice attorney, Michael Archuleta is a doctor and lawyer with both legal and medical expertise.
Archuleta Law Firm has helped clients receive millions in their FTCA military medical malpractice claims. Contact us today to get help.
It costs no more for a client to come to the Archuleta Law Firm than it does to a law firm that has no experience in Federal Tort Claims Act Our law office is skilled at communicating with clients, whether it be on the computer, whether it be by telephone, or whether it be in person. We welcome clients from all over the world.
— Dr. Michael Archuleta