Overseas Claims - The Military Claims Act

The Military Claims Act was designed to fill a gap left by the Federal Tort Claims Act when Congress failed to make the FTCA applicable to injuries arising outside of the United States and its territories. The MCA is an important statute for military families because they often receive their health care at American military hospitals operated outside of the United States. If injured in such a facility, a non-active duty patient can file a compensation claim under the Military Claims Act.

Administrative Adjudication – No Right to Sue

Under the MCA a claim is filed against the offending agency (Army, Navy, or Air Force). An investigation is conducted by that agency and a decision is made. If it is determined that injuries resulted from negligent medical care, then money damages are awarded. If the claimant is unhappy with the result, he may appeal the decision to a senior official within the Department of Defense. That official’s decision is final.

Because there is no right to judicial review, MCA claims are usually handled differently from those filed under the FTCA. The MCA administrative claim should be more thorough and must be supported by expert medical reports. This is important because the claimant does not have the right to confront the doctors or other health care providers who caused the alleged injury. Moreover, the claimant cannot confront the medical expert who reviews the case for the offending agency. Therefore, the best hope for succeeding under the MCA is to have unimpeachable experts prepare reports on the claimant’s behalf. Only in this way can the claimant help defeat the natural tendency of the agency to defend the actions of its employees.

Our firm takes particular pride in having secured major recoveries under the MCA despite the difficult obstacles posed by that statute.

If you have an overseas claim, please contact us as soon as possible.