Vets Seek Compensation for Hospital Errors

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs will be asked to pay disability benefits and possibly other compensation for hospital mistakes that possibly exposed veterans to infectious body fluids.

An attorney said he is preparing to file claims with the VA for about 60 veterans, including three women. The clients include veterans who have tested positive for HIV and hepatitis and others who suffered emotional distress from the VA providing them with initial positive blood tests for infections that turned out to be wrong.

The attorney, Mike Sheppard of Nashville, also said other veterans among the roughly 10,000 affected former patients at VA hospitals in Murfreesboro, Tenn., Miami and Augusta, Ga., are likely to seek compensation beyond the VA's offer of free medical care.