A three-judge panel in Atlanta ruled in the case of a 9-year-old boy who became blind after being treated for asthma in the emergency room at the Jacksonville Naval Air Station in 2001. The court found in its decision Monday that the Florida Good Samaritan Act protects military emergency rooms even though they are not licensed by the state, The Florida Times-Union reported.

Under the act, emergency rooms and their employees are protected from malpractice suits unless they demonstrate "reckless disregard" for patients' safety.

"Basically they're saying that the Navy hospital should be under the

same standards as any other hospital in Florida for emergency room

treatment," said former Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward Burnett Gaines,

who represented the government in the trial.

The appellate court sent the case back to the trial court, where U.S. District Judge Henry Adams could rule that the lawyer for the plaintiff did meet the higher standard.