Had To Seek A Second Opinion, Now What?

[marina53]

Recently my husband sought care at a VA hospital and received substandard care, in my opinion. To make a LONG story short, he had a tumor and was told that it was "nothing". After several months of going back and forth with the VA, (he never actually saw a physician, but a PA), he finally sought an outside opinion from a civilian doctor. The civilian doctor was alarmed at his care and scheduled him for surgery. I am an RN and did some very basic internet research, which indeed showed that my husband did not receive the care he should have. Now we are facing thousands of dollars in medical expenses just because the VA hospital did not follow the accepted standard of care for his condition. Can someone tell me if there is a way to submit what we paid for outside care to the VA and be compensated for our expenses? I am not seeking malpractice, but just getting the money back that we paid for care the VA hospital should have provided to begin with.

[Buck52]

Just my 2 cents

sorry to hear this happen to your hubby & un-excusable to say the least!

Unfortunately I don't think the VA will pay for the'' outside'' health care?..if he had this condition while in the military then he needs to get it service connected!

File a claim show medical records as evidence and get all his medical records from the service and from the VAMC he went to for care & private Dr's reports & statements

now I'm not 100%sure! please don't give up!

other hadit members will chimme in here on Advise & Application Forms and what he needs to do.

Thank your hubby for his service.

Edited December 15, 2014 by britton

[Berta]

The only way I know of to recover those expenses is to file either a FTCA claim or a Section l151 claim or both.

But these claims are based on malpractice.

If successful, this type of claim can help recover the non VA medical expenses he incurred.

[georgiapapa]

To follow up with the advice from Berta and britton, immediately go to the medical records office at the VAMC where your husband received the substandard care and get copies of his medical records (especially the reports prepared by the incompetent NP) before you file a FTCA claim or Section 1151 claim. If your husband's VAMC gets any hint that a complaint or claim is about to be filed against the VAMC, records may suddenly be changed or lost.

Good luck to you and your husband

[marina53]

Thank you for the advice. We are gathering information and will proceed from there. I will keep everyone posted as things move forward.

[jbasser]

Was the Tumor cancerous? You should get all info from the VA and the outside records. Then take them to an attorney who does Tort Cases. You have time limits so act soon.

Tort amount depend on the state you live in.

Jbasser

[marina53]

No, thank God, the tumor was not cancerous. However there is a known association between this particular kind of tumor and cancers in the area where it was located, so it needed to be investigated . When we saw the civilian doctor, of course he knew that, plus my husband had every other risk factor for this kind of cancer, so he put him on his next surgery day as an emergent case to do a biopsy, multiple biopsies, which had to be done under general anesthesia in the operating room. If this cancer is caught early, there is a good chance of cure. (Sorry, for being so vague, but I don't want to give too much away in case others, not friendlies, are reading this) So, it really isn't malpractice because no harm was done (except pyschological and financial distress) but the negligence is really mindboggling and I am wondering who else this NP is brushing off in such a condescending manner. All we are seeking is the financial recompensation which I know is a long. long shot.