Williams v. United States

Facts

Berlie White, while at a restaurant in Cherokee, North Carolina, became short of breath, developing 'various signs of respiratory distress.' White presented himself to the emergency room of the nearby Cherokee Indian Hospital. The hospital was operated by the United States Public Health Service. The federal employees operating the hospital refused to treat White or to refill his oxygen tank because he was not Indian. White was referred to the Swain County Hospital 10 miles away. When White arrived at Swain he was in extreme respiratory distress, and he died the next day. P sued D alleging that White's death was caused by the 'refusal to provide any treatment or assistance' and 'the delay of his access to medical care.' P commenced this action under the Federal Tort Claim Act ('FTCA'), 28 U.S.C. §§ 1346(b), 2671-2680, alleging (1) that the D violated the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act ('EMTALA'), 42 U.S.C. § 1395dd, by refusing to provide emergency medical care for White and by failing to stabilize his condition; (2) that D denied White equal protection of the laws and due process in violation of the Fifth Amendment; and (3) that D acted 'intentionally to deprive White, by reason of his non-Indian race and ethnicity, the services that would have been readily provided to an Indian,' in violation of North Carolina law. D filed a motion to dismiss, based on the contention that the FTCA did not waive D's immunity for the claims asserted and therefore that the court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction. The court agreed holding that the FTCA does not create liability for the federal government based upon violations of federal law' and that North Carolina has no law creating a duty in favor of a private person to provide medical treatment or to recover for a discriminatory refusal to provide medical treatment. P appealed. 

Issues

Rule of Law

Holding and Decision

Legal Analysis

© 2007-2024 ABN Study Partner.