Leab v. Chambersburg Hospital

230 F.R.D. 395, 2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 35691, 2005 WL 2030482
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedAugust 11, 2005
DocketNo. Civ. 1:CV-04-0504
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 230 F.R.D. 395 (Leab v. Chambersburg Hospital) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Leab v. Chambersburg Hospital, 230 F.R.D. 395, 2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 35691, 2005 WL 2030482 (M.D. Pa. 2005).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

CALDWELL, District Judge.

I. Introduction

We are considering the United States’ motion to dismiss Count I of Plaintiffs’ amended complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. This action stems from complications that arose during the birth of the Plaintiffs’ son, Kevin Andrew Leab. The Plaintiffs, Shelley Conrad Leab and Kevin Leab, filed suit against multiple defendants alleging various claims. Count I of the amended complaint alleges that the United States, through the actions of Dr. Margaret O’Reilly, failed to obtain Mrs. Leab’s informed consent prior to using misoprostol to “ripen” her cervix.1

II. Standard of Review

The Defendant moves to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.2 Under Rule 12(b)(1), the Plaintiff bears “the burden of proof that jurisdiction does in fact exist.” Mortensen v. First Federal Sav. And LoanAss’n., 549 F.2d 884, 891 [396]*396(3d Cir.1977). “A Rule 12(b)(1) motion may be treated as either a facial or factual challenge to the court’s subject matter jurisdiction.” Gould Electronics Inc., v. United States, 220 F.3d 169, 176 (3d Cir.2000). A facial attack requires that the court consider only the complaint, documents referenced in the compliant, and documents attached to the complaint in a “light most favorable to the plaintiff.” Id. A factual attack allows for the use of materials outside the complaint. Id. Both parties agree that the United States is asserting a facial challenge to our subject matter jurisdiction.

III. Discussion

The United States argues that because a claim for failure to obtain informed consent sounds in battery under Pennsylvania law, the Plaintiffs’ claim must be dismissed as the United States has not waived its sovereign immunity for the intentional tort of battery under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA). See Montgomery v. Bazaz-Sehgal, 798 A.2d 742, 749, 568 Pa. 574, 585 (Pa.2002); 28 U.S.C. § 2680(h). The Defendant also contends that 42 U.S.C. § 233(e), which abrogates the United States’ immunity for a battery committed by a Public Health Service (PHS) employee, does not apply in this instance. The Plaintiffs do not dispute that Pennsylvania considers informed consent a battery or that the FTCA bars recovery from the United States for a battery committed by an employee covered by the act. The Plaintiffs maintain, however, that since Dr. O’Reilly is considered a PHS employee, § 233(e) allows a suit against the United States for battery.

42 U.S.C. § 233(e) provides that “[f]or purposes of this section, the provisions of section 2680(h) of Title 28 shall not apply to assault or battery arising out of negligence in the performance of medical, surgical, dental, or related functions, including the conduct of clinical studies or investigations.” The United States argues that the phrase “arising out of negligence” bars the Plaintiffs’ claim for lack of informed consent because such a claim can never sound in negligence under Pennsylvania law. In support of its argument, the Defendant directs our attention to Franklin v. United States, 992 F.2d 1492 (10th Cir.1993). In Franklin, the Tenth Circuit interpreted a similar provision of an immunity statute pertaining to employees of the Veterans Health Administration (VA). The court determined that 38 U.S.C. § 7316(f)3 allowed a plaintiff to pursue a battery claim against the United States by abrogating the immunity provided in the FTCA under § 2680(h). Id. at 1502. The Defendant maintains that the difference in the wording between § 7316(f) and § 233(e) demonstrates that § 233(e) does not apply in this case.

The pertinent language of § 7316(f) provides that:

[t]he exception provided in section 2680(h) of title 28 shall not apply to any claim arising out of a negligent or wrongful act or omission of any person described in subsection (a) in furnishing medical care or treatment ... while in the exercise of such person’s duties in or for the Administration.

While similar to § 233(e), § 7316(f) includes the phrase “wrongful act or omission.” The United States contends that this phrase is the reason that a claim of battery can be pursued under the VA statute. The Defendant further argues that since Congress omitted this phrase from § 233(e), it did not want the United States to be liable for the type of claim asserted by the Plaintiffs. The Plaintiffs respond with two arguments. First, they maintain that the Defendant’s reading of § 233(e) would “render the ‘assault and battery1 language of the statute superfluous.” (Doc. 60, Opp.Br., p. 3). Second, they argue that the United States’ reading of § 233(e) would be unjust in light of the Defendant’s interpretation of § 7316(f) and other similar statutes.

While there are a number of cases interpreting the VA statute and other similarly worded statutes, we have found only two cases that address § 233(e). In Lojuk v. Quandt, 706 F.2d 1456 (7th Cir.1983), the Seventh Circuit, in dicta, discussed the interpretation of § 233(e) and various other immunity statutes to determine the proper interpretation of an earlier version of the VA statute. The court first determined that [397]*397statutes such as § 233(e) were not intended to immunize individual employees “from battery claims ... unless a plaintiff had an alternative remedy against the United States under the FTCA.” Id. at 1463.; Franklin, 992 F.2d at 1500. To achieve this result, Congress included subsection (e) in these statutes to “expressly [waive] the battery provision of Section 2680(h).” Lojuk, 706 F.2d at 1463. The Seventh Circuit then looked to the legislative history of 10 U.S.C. § 1089(e),4 which immunizes the medical personnel of the Armed Forces, to ascertain Congress’ intent when it enacted the various immunity statutes, including § 233(e).5 The legislative history indicated that Congress was aware that some states allowed a plaintiff to plead certain medical malpractice claims as batteries. Lojuk, 706 F.2d at 1463 0quoting Sen. Rep. No. 94-1264, 94th Cong., 2d Sess. 9-10, reprinted in 1976 U.S.C.C.A.N 4443, 4451.).

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Bluebook (online)
230 F.R.D. 395, 2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 35691, 2005 WL 2030482, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/leab-v-chambersburg-hospital-pamd-2005.