(AP) A U.S. Army veteran from St. Louis who lost a leg and suffered severe brain damage when a routine surgical procedure at the John Cochran VA Medical Center went bad has been awarded $8.3 million in a medical negligence lawsuit
Postal worker Dirk Askew had a cardiac stent inserted at the veterans’ hospital in February 2009 after complaining of chest pain. He returned one week later after developing an infection in his right leg, which was later amputated. His lawyers said surgeons improperly used infected tissue to repair the damage.
The  settlement will pay $6.8 million to the 43-year-old Askew and $1.5 million to his wife.
The case marks the latest negligence claim at Cochran after years of problems with staffing and sterilization.