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Military Medical Malpractice Lawsuits Could Be Legal Soon

On Behalf of | May 10, 2019 | Medical Malpractice

When you need help from a medical professional, you expect to be treated with a high level of care. It does not matter who you are or what kind of medical professional you are seeking treatment from. However, did you know that military personnel is prevented from filing a claim against military medical professionals who make mistakes?

Today, we want to talk about this and how it could be changing. At Licata & Yeremenko, A Professional Law Corporation, you can count on us when you need a medical malpractice lawyer in California by your side.

What Is This About?

A new bill being introduced in Congress has been a long time in the making. You may not be aware of this, but US troops cannot file lawsuits against the federal government, including against military doctors, for medical malpractice.

This is because of what is known as the Feres doctrine, a nearly 70-year-old legal ruling that “precludes troops from suing the federal government for injuries deemed incidental to military service.”

Army Sgt. First Class Richard Stayskal has been working diligently to change this ruling. If Congress paves the way, he would be able to file suit over what he believes was a missed diagnosis and delayed treatment of his metastatic lung cancer.

At a hearing, the wife of Alexis Witt testified. She says that her husband suffered from a brain injury following an appendectomy he received in 2003 when a military nurse gave him an overdose of fentanyl that caused cardiac arrest. She claims that the same nurse was involved with the death of a patient a year before her husband’s incident and “went on to kill two more patients” after that.

  • These are the kinds of things medical malpractice lawsuits prevent.

If It Happens To You

There are many ways in which medical professionals make mistakes. Medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the US, killing around 250,000 people each year. These errors are preventable and often caused by:

  • Medication mistakes
  • Healthcare-acquired infections
  • Surgical errors
  • Anesthesia mistakes
  • Misdiagnosis
  • Delayed treatment
  • Birth injuries
  • And more

Think about how many medical professionals you see each year (doctors, nurses, paramedics, optometrists, dentists, pharmacists, etc.). If one of these people causes you harm due to negligence, you should be able to recover compensation.

How We Can Help

Medical mistakes can be life-altering, but you should not be on the line for the expenses of another person’s negligence is to blame. At Licata & Yeremenko, A Professional Law Corporation, we want to help if you or a loved one have been injured. We will investigate what happened so we can secure the compensation you deserve. This can include:

  • Coverage of all medical expenses related to the mistake, including future medical expenses
  • Recovery of lost income if you are unable to work
  • Pain and suffering/loss of enjoyment of life damages
  • Loss of consortium
  • Punitive damages against the responsible parties

If you need a California medical malpractice attorney, you can reach out to us by calling at 818-783-5757.

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