The federal government spent more than $180 million last year on medical malpractice claims, with the lion’s share of the payments going to settle suits brought against the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to an analysis of Judgment Fund records.
The V.A. pulled $98 million from the fund, which is used to pay for the government’s court judgments and lawsuit settlements, to resolve 456 cases, with 10 payments of more than $1 million. The biggest payment more than $17 million went to an ex-Marine who suffered a massive stroke after having eight teeth pulled at the Philadelphia Veterans’ Administration Medical Center. The armed forces spent more than $62 million to settle 91 medical malpractice suits in 2012, and the Department of Health and Human Services paid out $17 million for 39 claims.
