Vets affected by VA hospital errors to file claims

Vets affected by VA hospital errors to file claims
Monday, July 27, 2009 2:34:30 PM

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.(AP)

An attorney is preparing to ask the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to pay disability benefits and damages for hospital mistakes that may have exposed veterans to infectious body fluids _ a complaint that he said could ultimately multiply into many more such demands.

The attorney, Mike Sheppard of Nashville, said he is preparing to file claims with the VA for about 60 veterans, including three women.

Among them are veterans who have tested positive for HIV and hepatitis and others who suffered emotional distress after the VA provided them with initial positive blood tests for infections that turned out to be wrong.

Sheppard also said other veterans among the roughly 10,000 affected former patients at VA hospitals in Murfreesboro, Tenn., Miami and Augusta, Ga., are likely to seek compensation beyond the VA's offer of free medical care.
read more here
Vets affected by VA hospital errors to file claims