Rodriguez v. Antwi

Background

Josette Rodriguez brought a medical-malpractice action against Flora Antwi, D.N.P., Casa Maria Community Health Center (CMCHC), and Acacia Network, Inc. Rodriguez alleged that Antwi treated her at CMCHC in April 2020 and misdiagnosed her as suffering from AIDS. According to the complaint, the alleged misdiagnosis caused stress and depression and led to improper treatment for the actual cause of her symptoms.

Rodriguez originally filed the case in Bronx Supreme Court. The Government removed it to federal court after determining that CMCHC was a federally funded public health center and that Antwi was an employee of the United States Public Health Service when the treatment occurred.

Substitution of the United States

The Government asked the court to substitute the United States for Antwi and CMCHC and to dismiss the claims against them under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1), which concerns the court’s subject-matter jurisdiction.

The court relied on the Federally Supported Health Centers Assistance Act and the Federal Tort Claims Act. It explained that federally funded health centers and their employees may be treated as employees of the United States Public Health Service for tort-liability purposes. For medical or related services provided in that capacity, the Federal Tort Claims Act provides the exclusive remedy against the United States.

The Department of Health and Human Services had deemed CMCHC and, by extension, Antwi to be Public Health Service employees for services provided during 2020. The United States Attorney had also certified that CMCHC and Antwi were federal employees acting within the scope of their employment when the alleged treatment occurred. The court held that these determinations required substitution of the United States for Antwi and CMCHC.

Rodriguez questioned whether CMCHC had the required status throughout the relevant period and whether Antwi was acting within the scope of her federal duties. The court rejected those arguments, finding that Rodriguez had not alleged specific facts sufficient to challenge the certification and that speculation in her opposition papers was insufficient.

Failure to Exhaust Administrative Remedies

The court held that, after substitution, the Federal Tort Claims Act required Rodriguez to submit an administrative claim before filing suit in federal court. The court treated this exhaustion requirement as jurisdictional, meaning that the court could not hear the claims unless the requirement was satisfied.

The court stated that the parties did not dispute that Rodriguez had not exhausted her administrative remedies. Because she therefore had not shown that subject-matter jurisdiction existed, the court held that the claims against CMCHC and Antwi had to be dismissed under Rule 12(b)(1).

Rodriguez argued that she did not know about CMCHC’s or Antwi’s federal status until the Government removed the case in 2024. She asked the court to account for that procedural history and suggested that she receive a 60-day period to submit the required administrative claim before dismissal. The court declined to delay dismissal, explaining that 28 U.S.C. § 2679(d)(5) provides a statutory procedure that may allow a claim to be treated as timely if it is submitted to the appropriate federal agency within 60 days after dismissal and other requirements are met.

Disposition

Judge Margaret M. Garnett granted the Government’s motion. The United States was substituted as the defendant for Antwi and CMCHC. The court dismissed all claims against Antwi, CMCHC, and the United States under Rule 12(b)(1) for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction because Rodriguez had not exhausted the required administrative remedies. The court directed the Clerk to make the substitution and then dismiss those claims. The opinion does not state a disposition of any claims against Acacia Network, Inc.