Levin v. United States  Steven A. Levin sued his military doctor
and the United States for medical malpractice and medical
battery for a procedure performed at the United States Naval
Hospital in Guam. The United States substituted itself for the
military doctor and claimed that they had sovereign immunity
which barred the claim under the Gonzalez Act. Levin argues that
the Gonzalez Act only removes liability from armed services
medical personnel and does not create an immunity that would
remove any possibility for recovery in medical battery suits
against armed forces medical personnel. The United States
contends that no waiver of sovereign immunity exists unless a
statute’s explicit language creates a waiver. The lower courts
dismissed Levin's case by stating that the United States'
sovereign immunity did apply under the Gonzalez Act, therefore
barring this case from continuing. Levin contends that to bar
his claim because of sovereign immunity would be to prevent
patients injured by military medical person