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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FAMILY SETTLES LAWSUIT AGAINST MACDILL AIRFORCE BASE
IN DEADLY MENINGITIS CASE
Parents
of 2-year old boy are glad to have closure; plan to use settlement
money to educate others about the disease.
TAMPA,
FL -- The family of a 2-year old Brandon boy who died after
a U.S. Air Force physician failed to diagnose bacterial meningitis
has settled a lawsuit against the physician, MacDill Air Force
Base, and the Federal Government, announced Roy
Oppenheim, a South Florida attorney representing the family.
The suit was settled for $600,000.00.
"We knew this battle would be uphill from the beginning because
the federal government has so many restrictions on lawsuits that
ultimately affect the kinds of awards that are normally paid out
in a case like this," said Oppenheim. "But since the government
rarely settles wrongful death
cases without going to trial, we felt this outcome was fair and
the family is pleased to put this ordeal behind them."
Henry and Donna Mart's nightmare took place on September 11, 1999 when their 2-year old son Aaron became very ill. Henry Mart, a Sr. Master Sergeant with the U.S. Air Force, called MacDill's medical clinic and was told to bring the child in for observation. Dr. Lawrence Hsu diagnosed Aaron with a routine virus despite Donna Mart's repeated pleas that the child probably had bacterial meningitis because he had all the classic symptoms: high fever, vomiting, clammy skin, sensitivity to light, achy joints, and listlessness. Mrs. Mart kept a list of the symptoms on her refrigerator because a close friend's child had recently died of the disease. But Dr. Hsu refused to do a spinal tap or prescribe antibiotics. Instead, he sent the family home with orders to pick up an over-the-counter remedy. Several hours later, the family's worst suspicions came true as little Aaron died and an autopsy showed he indeed had bacterial meningitis.
Last year, the Mart's filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the doctor, the Air Force base, and the federal government, which is usually protected under sovereign immunity. But the Federal Tort Claims Act spells out how and when a party can take legal action. The FTCA provides a limited waiver of the federal government's sovereign immunity when its employees are negligent within the scope of their employment.
The Mart family will be using some of their settlement money to
work on educating the public about meningitis. "I don't want what
happened to my child to happen to any other child," said Donna
Mart. "I encourage every parent to learn the symptoms and be proactive."
She tells Aaron's personal story in a web page which can be found
at www.musa.org/stories/aaron_mart.htm.
The page is connected to the Meningitis Foundation of America
which the Mart's support.
South Florida attorneys, Roy Oppenheim of the Weston based firm
Oppenheim Pilelsky and Alan S. Rosenberg, a partner with the Tampa
and Ft. Lauderdale firm of Koleos, Rosenberg, and Metzger represent
Donna and Henry Mart.
# # #
Oppenheim
is a partner in the firm, along with his wife Ellen Pilelsky.
Oppenheim Pilelsky, the oldest law firm in Weston, is a general
practice concentrating in real estate,
litigation and consumer
related matters. The firm sued Firestone
Tire & Rubber Company on behalf of all Florida residents who
have been subject to the recall of defective tires and is suing
the US Government concerning the wrongful death of a two-year
old who died of meningitis after a misdiagnosis by a doctor at
MacDill Airforce Base. The law firm of Oppenheim & Pilelsky
is located at: 1290 Weston Road, Suite 300, Weston, FL 33326 (954)
384-6114 or 1-888-384-6114. Oppenheim Pilelsky can also be found
at www.oppenheimlaw.com.
/Contact:
Christine Manna or Julie Silver at Boardroom Communications, 954-370-8999.
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