Defendant's Attorney:

Description: Florence, South Carolina health care lawyer represented Plaintiff who sued Defendant on a Federallly Supported Health Centes Assistance Act ("FSHCAA") violation theory.


Plaintiff was a patient of CareSouth, a federally deemed community health center under the Federally Supported Health Centers Assistance Act (“FSHCAA”), 42 U.S.C. § 233(g)-(n), that receives federal grant funds under Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act, 42 U.S.C. § 254b. The FSHCAA authorizes the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) to deem an entity that receives federal funds to be an employee of the Public Health Service (“PHS”) for purposes of 42 U.S.C. § 233. Once the Secretary deems the entity a PHS employee, that “determination shall be final and binding upon the Secretary and the Attorney General and other parties to any civil action or proceeding.” 42 U.S.C. § 233(g)(1)(F). PHS employees are eligible for coverage under the Federal Tort Claims Act (“FTCA”), 28 U.S.C. § 1346(b), including “absolute immunity . . . for actions arising out of the performance of medical or related functions within the scope of their employment.” Hui v. Castaneda, 559 U.S. 799, 806 (2010) (citing 42 U.S.C. § 233(a)). CareSouth was a deemed PHS employee for the time periods relevant to this lawsuit.

Outcome:
CareSouth was entitled to remove this case pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1442(a)(1), and it is entitled to immunity from suit and substitution of the United States as the proper defendant. The Court GRANTS CareSouth's motion to substitute [ECF No. 9] and SUBSTITUTES the United States as the defendant in this action.
Mixon v. CareSouth Carolina Inc. (D. S.C. 2022)

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

Comments: