Military Medical Accountability Act

Ben Glass

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If one Congressman from New York has his way, members of the U.S. armed forces would be able to file medical malpractice suits against the military.

The Carmelo Rodriquez Military Medical Accountability Act has been introduced by Democratic Rep. Maurice Hinchey in an effort to reverse a 1950 decision by the Supreme Court that protects the military from claims of malpractice.

The bill would allow members of the military to file suit for death or personal injury that resulted from negligence, the failure to act, or wrongful acts in medical, dental, or other health care the military provides to service members. The claims would be filed against the government, rather than individual medical personnel.

The legislation’s name comes from a U.S. Marine sergeant who died a year ago from skin cancer after what some called errors in medical judgment were made by military medical personnel.

Ellenville, New York resident Carmelo Rodriquez, 29 at the time of his death, had a melanoma on his buttocks which was misdiagnosed as a birthmark or wart by military doctors in Iraq.

Supporters of the Feres Doctrine, the decision the bill is attempting to overturn, say that it is necessary for protecting officers from the threat of potential lawsuits by lower-ranking personnel and aiding in keeping doctors in the military.