Military service members have long chafed over a decades-old Supreme Court ruling that absolutely bars them from pursuing medical malpractice claims for any injury they incur that is "incident to military service."

As we reported in an earlier blog post (May 12), that "incident to" language was at one time confined somewhat narrowly to battlefield wounds and injuries, which left the door open on negligent acts committed by medical personnel in non-combat arenas.

And then came the Feres Doctrine in 1950, which greatly expanded the bar, effectively limiting any malpractice lawsuit by a military member for any reason.

As we informed readers in our earlier post, there was hope among many that the Feres principle might soon be overruled, following a case we described in which clear acts of medical malpractice were committed during an Air Force member's routine appendectomy surgery at a military hospital several years ago. The non-commissioned officer died from the medical errors.

In light of the Court's refusal without comment to hear the case, though, Feres still stands solidly as bedrock doctrine. The Court made that decision late last month.

"The justices made a bad decision," said the brother-in-law of the deceased man in whose name the malpractice suit was filed. "They should have at least given us a chance by hearing the case."

The family vows to continue its fight through political channels, hoping for a change in the law.

"We'll continue to see this through," said a relative. "This decision could negatively impact the military for generations."

Related Resource: Stars and Stripes, "Supreme Court deals devastating blow to Feres Doctrine opponents" June 27, 2011