Task: songer_typeiss

What follows is an opinion from a United States Court of Appeals.
Your task is to determine the general category of issues discussed in the opinion of the court. Choose among the following categories. Criminal and prisioner petitions- includes appeals of conviction, petitions for post conviction relief, habeas corpus petitions, and other prisoner petitions which challenge the validity of the conviction or the sentence or the validity of continued confinement. Civil - Government - these will include appeals from administrative agencies (e.g., OSHA,FDA), the decisions of administrative law judges, or the decisions of independent regulatory agencies (e.g., NLRB, FCC,SEC). The focus in administrative law is usually on procedural principles that apply to administrative agencies as they affect private interests, primarily through rulemaking and adjudication. Tort actions against the government, including petitions by prisoners which challenge the conditions of their confinement or which seek damages for torts committed by prion officials or by police fit in this category. In addition, this category will include suits over taxes and claims for benefits from government. Diversity of Citizenship - civil cases involving disputes between citizens of different states (remember that businesses have state citizenship). These cases will always involve the application of state or local law. If the case is centrally concerned with the application or interpretation of federal law then it is not a diversity case. Civil Disputes - Private - includes all civil cases that do not fit in any of the above categories. The opposing litigants will be individuals, businesses or groups.

J. JOSEPH SMITH, Circuit Judge:
This is an appeal from dismissal on summary judgment in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, James T. Foley, Chief Judge, as untimely of a Tort Claims Act suit. The action was brought on behalf of a serviceman, his wife and an infant son whose illness, meningitis, was negligently diagnosed at the United States Air Force Base Hospital at Plattsburgh, New York as teething with a cold. The original diagnosis by a Dr. Marger was on or about April 15, 1971; further diagnosis and treatment occurred at the United States Naval Hospital, Balboa, California beginning later in April; claim was first made January 14, 1974; suit was brought in December of 1974. Since a two-year limitations period for filing a claim applies from the date a claim “accrues,” 28 U.S.C. § 2401(b), the suit was untimely unless the claim accrued after January 13, 1972. Plaintiffs rely on two theories to support a contention that the period did not begin until a date within two years of the institution of the claim: first, a “continuing treatment” theory, see Kossick v. United States, 330 F.2d 933, 936 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 379 U.S. 837, 85 S.Ct. 73, 13 L.Ed.2d 44 (1964); Ciccarone v. United States, 486 F.2d 253, 256 (3d Cir. 1973); Modave v. Long Island Jewish Medical Center, 501 F.2d 1065, 1074 (2d Cir. 1974) (applying New York law), and second, a claim that the alleged negligence was first reasonably apparent to the child’s mother not earlier than two years prior to claim, see Jordan v. United States, 503 F.2d 620, 622 (6th Cir. 1974); Tyminski v. United States, 481 F.2d 257, 265 (3d Cir. 1973); Toal v. United States, 438 F.2d 222 (2d Cir. 1971); Hungerford v. United States, 307 F.2d 99 (9th Cir. 1962); Quinton v. United States, 304 F.2d 234 (5th Cir. 1962).
We agree with Chief Judge Foley that there is no merit in the first contention, since the treatment was not continuous by the same doctor (or an associate) or the same hospital for the required period.
The second contention may eventually be found not to have merit. The affidavit of the young mother, however, states that she had been told that she must be patient because the teeth cutting episode could last for a period of time, that at Balboa the diagnosis was undetermined and that the child was very sick and that they suspected meningitis. Moreover, the affidavit appears to assert that the first information she received, that delay in treatment may have caused the severe injuries, came in advice from a Dr. Davis on June 6, 1972, within two years of the date of claim. The hospital records indicate a finding of meningitis, although they also indicate tests for possible tuberculosis. It is not established to what extent the hospital records were available to one in the mother’s situation.
To be sure, on the claim, pleadings and affidavits there is support for a finding that plaintiff mother knew more than two years before claim that Dr. Marger’s diagnosis of teething and cold was incorrect, but plaintiffs claim that the wording was that of counsel and that plaintiffs can explain apparent inconsistencies. In addition, plaintiffs contend that a person in the position of the mother could not reasonably discover earlier than she did that the delay in correct diagnosis could and did cause the injuries complained of.
We think that on the record before the court a genuine issue of material fact existed, as to when a reasonable person in the position of the child’s mother should have realized that negligent malpractice had occurred. Summary judgment was therefore improper. Heyman v. Commerce & Industry Insurance Co., 524 F.2d 1317 (2d Cir. 1975); Judge v. City of Buffalo, 524 F.2d 1321 (2d Cir. 1975).
Reversed and remanded.

Question: What is the general category of issues discussed in the opinion of the court?
A. criminal and prisoner petitions
B. civil - government
C. diversity of citizenship
D. civil - private
E. other, not applicable
F. not ascertained
Answer:

Answer: B