Florida Patient to Sue VA

Week of August 24, 2009

A South Florida veteran who claims he contracted HIV during an endoscopic colonoscopy at a Miami Department of Veterans Affairs hospital says his attorneys have filed a notice that he will sue the federal government. Army veteran Juan Rivera, 55, claims he contracted HIV from the procedure on or about May 19, 2008. Rivera said he had been tested twice and both times he was positive for the disease. The VA has said the errors were limited to the three states, but a report by the agency's inspector general suggested more widespread problems. For more information on the recent problems with endoscopic procedures at several VA facilities, visit the VA Continues Endoscopic Procedure Notification for Veterans webpage.