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Contractors and War Vets Face Severe Health Issues After Stints at on Iraq and Afghanistan Military Bases

Military

An injury on a military base can result in a complicated process that does not always lead to straightforward compensation. Military base injuries may result in extensive lost wages or medical bills that leave victims and their families at risk of suffering from long-term financial, physical, and emotional impacts. As such, victims of these injuries and their families often have no choice but to pursue a legal claim.

Fox News published an article on April 9, 2016, about thousands of contractors and war veterans who became sick after working at what they call “burn pits.” Burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan were created to burn various types of trash, including garbage, IEDs, plastics, batteries, dead animals, and human waste. The toxic fumes have led not only to chronic illnesses such as cancer but also to deaths. Soldiers at the bases were too focused on their greater mission to think about the repercussions of ingesting the heavy smoke coming from the pits as close as just 20–30 feet away from them.

According to the Fox News article, one base burned up to 147 tons of materials per day. These burn pits omit carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, along with 1,000 other chemical components. Soldiers who have suffered from this injury on a military base have died from the fumes even though they are only in their 20s or 30s. The Department of Veteran Affairs has created a Burn Pit Registry list that includes 64,000 names from both active and retired service members. However, just because they are on that registry doesn’t mean the soldiers will receive any sort of acknowledgement or compensation.

The burn pits are just one example of the various types of injuries that have occurred on overseas military bases due to the negligence of military contractors. The cases include motor vehicle and road traffic accidents, malfunctioning equipment, toxic exposures, and various other types of injuries caused by military contractors such as DynCorp, KBR, Aecom, Halliburton, Fluor, and Arkel International.

Victims of such incidents are often covered by the Defense Base Act, a workers’ compensation system, aimed at providing medical and income benefits to workers injured on overseas military bases. In addition, these individuals often have claims of negligence against military contractors that may result in the ability to recover for mental anguish, pain and suffering, physical impairment, lost earning capacity, and past and future medical expenses.

Doyle Dennis Avery LLP focuses its practice on representing workers who have been harmed by negligent military contractors. If you have suffered an injury while working on an overseas military base, contact Doyle Dennis Avery LLP to determine what your legal rights are

Dr. Miguel Gomez Vs. Memorial Hermann Health System

Medical defamation

Doyle Dennis Avery LLP has secured a major victory in its ongoing case against Memorial Hermann Health System arising from defamation, business disparagement, and tortious interference that harmed a Houston, Texas cardiothoracic surgeon.  On August 15, 2019, the Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas issued an opinion rejecting Memorial Hermann’s effort to overturn the jury’s $6.3 million verdict and the 333rd District Court of Harris County’s Final Judgment

In a 67-page unanimous opinion, drafted by Justice Evelyn V. Keyes, the First Court of Appeals conducted a detailed review of the factual and legal arguments made by Memorial Hermann in an attempt to overturn the jury’s verdict.  The First Court of Appeals’ opinion overruled every single appellate point raised by Memorial Hermann.  Among other evidence relied upon by the First Court of Appeals was the testimony of multiple other physicians, including one physician who called Memorial Hermann’s actions “atrocious, damaging, [and] way over the line.”  The Court concluded by stating, “We affirm the judgment of the trial court.”

A copy of the Court’s full opinion is available at:  http://www.search.txcourts.gov/SearchMedia.aspx?MediaVersionID=f7fe57f6-0391-4b37-b4a1-ef46644e7356&MediaID=47305d53-844c-4dd0-b931-46e58546e260&coa=%22%20+%20this.CurrentWebState.CurrentCourt%20+%20@%22&DT=Opinion

The First Court of Appeals Opinion is a significant victory in Doyle Dennis Avery LLP ’s ongoing fight against Memorial Hermann.  However, it does not necessarily end the case because Memorial Hermann is legally permitted to appeal further, including to the Supreme Court of Texas.  Doyle Dennis Avery LLP ’s attorneys are proud to continue in their fight to allow their client to rebuild his reputation.  If you have suffered from defamation by a hospital system or misuse of a hospital peer review process, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP ’s attorneys stand ready to assist in evaluating your potential claim.

Doyle Dennis Avery LLP has filed suit on behalf of a Texas doctor against Baylor Scott & White Health

Medical defamation

Doyle Dennis Avery LLP has filed suit on behalf of a Texas doctor against Baylor Scott & White Health alleging breach of contract, violations of the Texas Health and Safety Code, for his wrongful termination by the hospital system.  The suit was filed in Dallas County District Court, in Dallas, Texas.

In the suit, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP has alleged that its client essentially was a whistleblower regarding unsafe practices that were occurring at the Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – Hilcrest.  For example, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP ’s physician client routinely raised serious concerns about about: (1) extremely cold operating rooms in the ambulatory surgery center, (2) dangerously sharp metal operating room doors in the ambulatory surgery center, (3) lack of safety straps to secure patients to operating tables, (4) lack of fire extinguishers, (5) use of dangerous cleaning chemicals, (6) lack of computers, (7) non-English anesthesia consent forms, (8) lack of training on newly implemented pain medication protocols, and (9) lack of prompt communication about medical procedures.

The suit further alleges that its client and other physicians who raised similar concerns clashed with hospital administration over the need to remedy issues involving patient safety.  As a result, these doctors, including Doyle Dennis Avery LLP ’s client, suffered from retaliation.  Specifically, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP ’s client was placed on leave, without the option to return, and ordered to sign a performance improvement plan.  In retaliation, the suit states, the hospital ultimately terminated the physician, but failed to follow specific requirements that were required of Baylor, including the Medical Staff Peer Review process.

As a result, the suit seeks damages, including damage to the physician’s reputation, lost earning capacity in the future, past lost wages, and mental anguish.  Doyle Dennis Avery LLP ’s attorneys have experience in representing physicians, doctors, and nurses in this specific area of retaliation, defamation, and violations of the Texas Health and Safety Code.  If you feel that you have been the victim of retaliator conduct or termination, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP ’s attorneys stand ready to complete a no-cost analysis of your claim to determine your rights under Texas law.

Doyle Dennis Avery LLP Files Lawsuit on Behalf of Pilot involved in Lake Accident

Maritime & Offshore Injury, New Filings

Doyle Dennis Avery LLP has filed suit on behalf of a pilot who suffered a broken neck in a severe boating accident on Lake Travis. While the negligent boat driver was insured, the insurance company refused to provide full value for our client’s severe injuries. Instead, International Marine Underwriters attempted to minimize the accident and underpay the injured pilot stating that it was only a “minor broken neck.” On March 22, 2010, the case was assigned to a Harris County District Court and Doyle Dennis Avery LLP looks forward to telling the injured pilot’s story to a jury of her peers

Transocean Offshore Oil Rig, Deepwater Horizon, Explodes in the Gulf of Mexico

Maritime & Offshore Injury

Over a hundred offshore oil rig workers are suffering from an enormous shock and tragedy today after an explosion at approximately 10:00 p.m. yesterday evening on the Deepwater Horizon, a deepwater offshore drilling platform about 50 miles off the coast of Louisiana in the Mississippi Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico.

The Deepwater Horizon is owned by Transocean but was under contract to British oil major BP PLC. It had been in the Macondo prospect since January, though on April 16 BP had applied for a permit to temporarily abandon the well at the explosion site.

At present, it appears that several people have been critically injured from the blast and several more crew members are missing after having escaped the rig on a workboat. The rig continued to burn for several hours.

The Deepwater Horizon was is a semisubmersible floating drilling unit, which was made famous when it drilled down just over 35,000 feet at another BP site, setting a world deepwater record.

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