Simmat v. United States Bureau of Prisons

McCONNELL, Circuit Judge.

At least since Estelle v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 104-06, 97 S.Ct. 285, 50 L.Ed.2d 251 (1976), federal courts have recognized the right of prisoners to relief if prison officials deny them basic medical care, in violation of the Eighth Amendment. In the case of state prisoners, the vehicle for such suits is 42 U.S.C. § 1983, with its jurisdictional predicate, 28 U.S.C. § 1343. See Simmat; Hunt v. Uphoff, 199 F.3d 1220 (10th Cir.1999). In the case of federal prisoners, surprisingly, the vehicle is not so clear. In Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 846, 114 S.Ct. 1970, 128…