A simple yet tragic fact situation will illustrate he aburdity and injustice of the Feres Doctrine.  Decide for yourself and then tell Congress the time has come to address the 75 year disgrace to our country and affront to the dignity and basic rights of our military that Feres has become.  

• Female Captain in the Military goes in for routine child birth.
• It appears that doctors committed one inexcusable error after another.  
• The baby suffered extreme and permeant injuries related to oxygen deprivation.

The case is dismissed immediately denying the Captain/mother basic patient rights to know what happened or to any way hold negligent medical providers responsible.

The Court laments the unfairness of the outcome and the 1950 Supreme Court decision of Feres v. United States that dictated it.  The Court states, “Suffice it to say that when a court is forced to apply the Feres doctrine, it frequently does so with a degree of regret.” 

The Feres Doctrine from day 1 was a disgrace to the military and the treatment of military personnel. 

The opinion has received widespread condemnation for its denial of basic rights to military personnel. 

The Court in question ruling on the rights of the Captain/mother and her baby states: “In the many decades since its inception, criticism of the so-called Feres doctrine has become endemic. That criticism is at its zenith in a case like this one—where a civilian third-party child is injured during childbirth, and suffers permanent disabilities..."

Despite the 75 years of hand wringing and remorse for each and every absurd and unjust outcome based upon Feres, the courts continue to embrace the disgraceful 1950 opinion because they must due to Supreme Court precedent. 

Feres itself invited Congress to take action to remedy the vagaries of the Federal Tort Claims Act that would allow such an outcome. 

Since 1950, courts have all but begged Congress to take action to protect active military from the unfairness of the Feres Doctrine.

Congress has for 70 years elected instead to take no action to allow military personnel basic patient rights. 

Tell Congress to take action now.  Our military deserves better. Contact your Congressman/Congresswoman.  

To read more about Feres and the 10th Circuit Court case that illustrates its expansive and ludicrous scope:

Military Personnel Have No Right to Competent Medical Care and No Right to Answers when Inexcusable Errors Occur