H. R. 3237—16 
§ 20137. Malpractice and negligence suits against United 
States 
(a) EXCLUSIVE REMEDY.—The remedy against the United States 
provided by sections 1346(b) and 2672 of title 28, for damages 
for personal injury, including death, caused by the negligent or 
wrongful act or omission of any physician, dentist, nurse, phar-
macist, or paramedical or other supporting personnel (including 
medical and dental technicians, nursing assistants, and therapists) 
of the Administration in the performance of medical, dental, or 
related health care functions (including clinical studies and inves-
tigations) while acting within the scope of such person’s duties 
or employment therein or therefor shall be exclusive of any other 
civil action or proceeding by reason of the same subject matter 
against such person (or the estate of such person) whose act or 
omission gave rise to the action or proceeding. 
(b) ATTORNEY GENERAL TO DEFEND ANY CIVIL ACTION OR PRO-
CEEDING FOR MALPRACTICE OR NEGLIGENCE.—The Attorney General 
shall defend any civil action or proceeding brought in any court 
against any person referred to in subsection (a) (or the estate 
of such person) for any such injury. Any such person against whom 
such civil action or proceeding is brought shall deliver within such 
time after date of service or knowledge of service as determined 
by the Attorney General, all process served upon such person or 
an attested true copy thereof to such person’s immediate superior 
or to whomever was designated by the Administrator to receive 
such papers. Such person shall promptly furnish copies of the 
pleading and process therein to the United States Attorney for 
the district embracing the place wherein the proceeding is brought, 
to the Attorney General, and to the Administrator. 
(c) REMOVAL OF ACTIONS.—Upon a certification by the Attorney 
General that any person described in subsection (a) was acting 
in the scope of such person’s duties or employment at the time 
of the incident out of which the suit arose, any such civil action 
or proceeding commenced in a State court shall be removed without 
bond at any time before trial by the Attorney General to the 
district court of the United States of the district and division 
embracing the place wherein it is pending and the proceeding 
deemed a tort action brought against the United States under 
the provisions of title 28, and all references thereto. Should a 
district court of the United States determine, on a hearing on 
a motion to remand held before a trial on the merits, that the 
case so removed is one in which a remedy by suit within the 
meaning of subsection (a) is not available against the United States, 
the case shall be remanded to the State court. 
(d) COMPROMISE OR SETTLEMENT OF CLAIMS.—The Attorney Gen-
eral may compromise or settle any claim asserted in such civil 
action or proceeding in the manner provided in section 2677 of 
title 28, and with the same effect. 
(e) APPLICABILITY OF OTHER PROVISIONS OF LAW.—For purposes 
of this section, the provisions of section 2680(h) of title 28 shall 
not apply to any cause of action arising out of a negligent or 
wrongful act or omission in the performance of medical, dental, 
or related health care functions (including clinical studies and inves-
tigations). 
(f) LIABILITY INSURANCE
FOR PERSONS ASSIGNED
TO FOREIGN 
COUNTRIES OR NON-FEDERAL AGENCIES.—The Administrator or the 
Administrator’s designee may, to the extent that the Administrator
H. R. 3237—17 
or the designee deems appropriate, hold harmless or provide liability 
insurance for any person described in subsection (a) for damages 
for personal injury, including death, caused by such person’s neg-
ligent or wrongful act or omission in the performance of medical, 
dental, or related health care functions (including clinical studies 
and investigations) while acting within the scope of such person’s 
duties if such person is assigned to a foreign country or detailed 
for service with other than a Federal department, agency, or 
instrumentality or if the circumstances are such as are likely to 
preclude the remedies of third persons against the United States 
described in section 2679(b) of title 28, for such damage or injury. 
§ 20138. Insurance and indemnification 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) SPACE
VEHICLE.—The term ‘‘space vehicle’’ means an 
object intended for launch, launched, or assembled in outer 
space, including the space shuttle and other components of 
a space transportation system, together with related equipment, 
devices, components, and parts. 
(2) THIRD PARTY.—The term ‘‘third party’’ means any person 
who may institute a claim against a user for death, bodily 
injury, or loss of or damage to property. 
(3) USER.—The term ‘‘user’’ includes anyone who enters into 
an agreement with the Administration for use of all or a portion 
of a space vehicle, who owns or provides property to be flown 
on a space vehicle, or who employs a person to be flown on 
a space vehicle. 
(b) AUTHORIZATION.—The Administration is authorized on such 
terms and to the extent it may deem appropriate to provide liability 
insurance for any user of a space vehicle to compensate all or 
a portion of claims by third parties for death, bodily injury, or 
loss of or damage to property resulting from activities carried on 
in connection with the launch, operations, or recovery of the space 
vehicle. Appropriations available to the Administration may be 
used to acquire such insurance, but such appropriations shall be 
reimbursed to the maximum extent practicable by the users under 
reimbursement policies established pursuant to section 20113 of 
this title. 
(c) INDEMNIFICATION.—Under such regulations in conformity with 
this section as the Administrator shall prescribe taking into account 
the availability, cost, and terms of liability insurance, any agree-
ment between the Administration and a user of a space vehicle 
may provide that the United States will indemnify the user against 
claims (including reasonable expenses of litigation or settlement) 
by third parties for death, bodily injury, or loss of or damage 
to property resulting from activities carried on in connection with 
the launch, operations, or recovery of the space vehicle, but only 
to the extent that such claims are not compensated by liability 
insurance of the user. Such indemnification may be limited to 
claims resulting from other than the actual negligence or willful 
misconduct of the user. 
(d) TERMS
OF
INDEMNIFICATION
AGREEMENT.—An agreement 
made under subsection (c) that provides indemnification must also 
provide for— 
(1) notice to the United States of any claim or suit against 
the user for the death, bodily injury, or loss of or damage 
to the property; and
H. R. 3237—18 
(2) control of or assistance in the defense by the United 
States, at its election, of that suit or claim. 
(e) CERTIFICATION OF JUST AND REASONABLE AMOUNT.—No pay-
ment may be made under subsection (c) unless the Administrator 
or the Administrator’s designee certifies that the amount is just 
and reasonable. 
(f) PAYMENTS.—Upon the approval by the Administrator, pay-
ments under subsection (c) may be made, at the Administrator’s 
election, either from funds available for research and development 
not otherwise obligated or from funds appropriated for such pay-
ments. 
§ 20139. Insurance for experimental aerospace vehicles 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) COOPERATING
PARTY.—The term ‘‘cooperating party’’ 
means any person who enters into an agreement with the 
Administration for the performance of cooperative scientific, 
aeronautical, or space activities to carry out the purposes of 
this chapter. 
(2) DEVELOPER.—The term ‘‘developer’’ means a United States 
person (other than a natural person) who— 
(A) is a party to an agreement with the Administration 
for the purpose of developing new technology for an experi-
mental aerospace vehicle; 
(B) owns or provides property to be flown or situated 
on that vehicle; or 
(C) employs a natural person to be flown on that vehicle. 
(3) EXPERIMENTAL AEROSPACE VEHICLE.—The term ‘‘experi-
mental aerospace vehicle’’ means an object intended to be flown 
in, or launched into, orbital or suborbital flight for the purpose 
of demonstrating technologies necessary for a reusable launch 
vehicle, developed under an agreement between the Administra-
tion and a developer. 
(4) RELATED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘related entity’’ includes a 
contractor or subcontractor at any tier, a supplier, a grantee, 
and an investigator or detailee. 
(b) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may provide liability insur-
ance for, or indemnification to, the developer of an experimental 
aerospace vehicle developed or used in execution of an agreement 
between the Administration and the developer. 
(c) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in this section, 
the insurance and indemnification provided by the Administra-
tion under subsection (b) to a developer shall be provided on 
the same terms and conditions as insurance and indemnifica-
tion is provided by the Administration under section 20138 
of this title to the user of a space vehicle. 
(2) INSURANCE.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—A developer shall obtain liability insur-
ance or demonstrate financial responsibility in amounts 
to compensate for the maximum probable loss from claims 
by— 
(i) a third party for death, bodily injury, or property 
damage, or loss resulting from an activity carried out 
in connection with the development or use of an experi-
mental aerospace vehicle; and
H. R. 3237—19 
(ii) the United States Government for damage or 
loss to Government property resulting from such an 
activity. 
(B) MAXIMUM REQUIRED.—The Administrator shall deter-
mine the amount of insurance required, but, except as 
provided in subparagraph (C), that amount shall not be 
greater than the amount required under section 50914(a)(3) 
of this title for a launch. The Administrator shall publish 
notice of the Administrator’s determination and the 
applicable amount or amounts in the Federal Register 
within 10 days after making the determination. 
(C) INCREASE IN DOLLAR AMOUNTS.—The Administrator 
may increase the dollar amounts set forth in section 
50914(a)(3)(A) of this title for the purpose of applying that 
section under this section to a developer after consultation 
with the Comptroller General and such experts and consult-
ants as may be appropriate, and after publishing notice 
of the increase in the Federal Register not less than 180 
days before the increase goes into effect. The Administrator 
shall make available for public inspection, not later than 
the date of publication of such notice, a complete record 
of any correspondence received by the Administration, and 
a transcript of any meetings in which the Administration 
participated, regarding the proposed increase. 
(D) SAFETY
REVIEW
REQUIRED
BEFORE
ADMINISTRATOR 
PROVIDES INSURANCE.—The Administrator may not provide 
liability insurance or indemnification under subsection (b) 
unless the developer establishes to the satisfaction of the 
Administrator that appropriate safety procedures and prac-
tices are being followed in the development of the experi-
mental aerospace vehicle. 
(3) NO INDEMNIFICATION WITHOUT CROSS-WAIVER.—Notwith-
standing subsection (b), the Administrator may not indemnify 
a developer of an experimental aerospace vehicle under this 
section unless there is an agreement between the Administra-
tion and the developer described in subsection (d). 
(4) APPLICATION OF CERTAIN PROCEDURES.—If the Adminis-
trator requests additional appropriations to make payments 
under this section, like the payments that may be made under 
section 20138(c) of this title, then the request for those appro-
priations shall be made in accordance with the procedures 
established by subsections (d) and (e) of section 50915 of this 
title. 
(d) CROSS-WAIVERS.— 
(1) ADMINISTRATOR
AUTHORIZED
TO
WAIVE.—The Adminis-
trator, on behalf of the United States, and its departments, 
agencies, and instrumentalities, may reciprocally waive claims 
with a developer or cooperating party and with the related 
entities of that developer or cooperating party under which 
each party to the waiver agrees to be responsible, and agrees 
to ensure that its own related entities are responsible, for 
damage or loss to its property for which it is responsible, 
or for losses resulting from any injury or death sustained by 
its own employees or agents, as a result of activities connected 
to the agreement or use of the experimental aerospace vehicle. 
(2) LIMITATIONS.—