The U.S. government is on the brink of giving active duty military personnel half a legal loaf when it comes to a fundamental constitutional right — their chance to seek justice in the civil courts if they suffer harms while receiving medical services in noncombat situations. If the U.S. Senate approves, as expected, a House-passed….
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Defense bill may offer active service personnel a way to win back key rights
Although members of Congress have fled the nation’s capital for their annual August recess, there’s guarded optimism that lawmakers may be open to reversing a seven-decades-old U.S. Supreme Court ruling that bars active duty military personnel from their constitutional right to pursue in the civil justice system claims that they have suffered harms while seeking….
Continue ReadingHigh court leaves it to Congress to restore service members’ basic rights
The U.S. Supreme Court has left it up to Congress to decide if service members may pursue in the civil justice system claims that they have suffered harms while seeking medical services, a fundamental civil right now denied to military personnel. Justices Clarence Thomas and Ruth Bader Ginsburg — who rarely agree on much —….
Continue ReadingBill takes aim at injustice for service personnel hurt by military medical care
Members of Congress have taken steps aimed at allowing service members to pursue actions in the civil justice system when they suffer harms while seeking medical services, a fundamental civil right now denied to military personnel. Members of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee heard powerful testimony from a Green Beret, an airman, and a judge….
Continue ReadingWill Supreme Court reconsider government’s immunity from medical malpractice suits by active-duty military?
Although Uncle Sam makes a special vow to provide medical care for those who fight for this nation, he also enjoys special legal shields from lawsuits from them if anything goes wrong with medical services they’re provided. But recent news reports show how past and present service personnel not only suffer shabby medical care but….
Continue ReadingSay what? Mar-a-Lago trio acting as ‘shadow rulers’ of Trump’s VA
So, see, Ike, Marc, and Bruce may be pretty swell guys. They’ve done well in business: Ike in comic books and entertainment, Marc in the law and consulting on white collar crime, and Bruce as a medical concierge who gets affluent patients in to see big name doctors. But this odd trio —Ike Perlmutter, Bruce….
Continue ReadingIs there a doctor aboard? While flying this summer, you may hope so
With tens of millions hopping on jets to get to summer vacation destinations, it’s worth noting that medical emergencies aloft aren’t as rare as many travelers might imagine — and it may be beneficial if a doctor happens to be aboard when the need arises. The nation’s top doctor, U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, of….
Continue ReadingVeterans deserve better than more scandals at VA hospitals in DC, nationwide
More than 100,000 patients in the area surrounding the nation’s capital rely on a flagship hospital for what should be blue-chip care. They deserve better than the continuing scandal that envelops not only the VA Medical Center in Washington, D.C., but also its parent Department of Veterans Affairs. Investigators have excoriated the VA and its….
Continue ReadingTo treat gun violence as a health crisis, start with existing myth-busting data
When partisans refuse to deal with deadly gun violence as a public health crisis and to support and fund rigorous research to guide law-making, it’s unsurprising that extreme and outlandish notions rush to occupy a noxious space in public discussions — a condition one think tank has labeled “truth decay.” Let’s not stoop, though, to useless….
Continue ReadingFDA approves a blood test to diagnose severity of traumatic brain injury
Federal officials offer a glimmer of hope in caring for head injuries, especially the sharp, repeated, and often damaging blows that afflict athletes and which millions worldwide are witnessing, yes, as part of the Winter Olympic Games. The federal Food and Drug Administration has announced that it has approved a long-awaited blood test that can….
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