Dewar Callum D, Boulter Jason H, Curry Brian P, Bowers Dana M, Bell Randy S
1Division of Neurosurgery, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda.
2Department of Surgery, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda; and.
Neurosurg Focus. 2020 Nov;49(5):E7. doi: 10.3171/2020.8.FOCUS20594.
Medical malpractice suits within the military have historically been limited by the Feres Doctrine, a legal precedent arising from a Supreme Court decision in 1950, which stated that active-duty personnel cannot bring suit for malpractice against either the United States government or military healthcare providers. This precedent has increasingly become a focus of discussion and reform as multiple cases claiming malpractice have been dismissed. Recently, however, the National Defense Authorization Act of 2020 initiated the first change to this precedent by creating an administrative body with the sole purpose of evaluating and settling claims of medical malpractice within the military's $50 billion healthcare system. This article seeks to present the legal history related to military malpractice and the Feres Doctrine as well as discuss the potential future implications that may arise as the Feres Doctrine is modified for the first time in 70 years.
历史上，军队内部的医疗事故诉讼一直受到费雷斯原则的限制，这一法律先例源于1950年最高法院的一项裁决，该裁决规定现役人员不能就医疗事故对美国政府或军队医疗服务提供者提起诉讼。随着多起声称存在医疗事故的案件被驳回，这一先例越来越成为讨论和改革的焦点。然而，最近，2020年的《国防授权法》对这一先例进行了首次修改，设立了一个行政机构，其唯一目的是评估和解决军队500亿美元医疗系统内的医疗事故索赔。本文旨在介绍与军队医疗事故和费雷斯原则相关的法律历史，并讨论在费雷斯原则70年来首次修改的情况下可能产生的未来潜在影响。
