In a Washington hospital, Rebekah Daniel gave birth to her first child, then bled to death over several hours. In North Carolina, Richard Stayskal was repeatedly told that his worsening symptoms were caused by asthma and pneumonia, even though a CT scan months earlier revealed an obvious growth on his lung. In California, Dean Witt went to a hospital to have his appendix removed and ended up in a permanent vegetative state because a breathing tube was inserted into his esophagus, rather than his airway.

Normally, these individuals and their families would have the right to bring a claim for medical malpractice against the hospitals for rendering negligent care. But the families of Rebekah, Richard, and Dean have no such remedy from our civil justice system because their loved ones were members of the military. Due to an antiquated Supreme Court decision from 1950, active-duty servicemembers are barred from bringing medical malpractice claims against the government—even when the medical care at issue is unrelated to any combat-related injury and is administered thousands of miles from a combat zone.

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