JAMES L. GRAHAM, District Judge.
Plaintiff Karl Vogt, an inmate within the custody of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction ("ODRC"), filed the instant action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §1983, alleging that ODRC employees Joseph Murphy, Nurse Young, Nurse Tim Cowgill, and Correctional Officer Lawson were deliberately indifferent to his serious medication needs in violation of the Eight Amendment. Plaintiff alleged that on July 5, 2018, he was given a fast-acting insulin injection at approximately 5:15 p.m. He stated that inmates are typically then permitted to cross the prison yard to the cafeteria, but that on the date in question, the yard was closed due to inclement weather. Plaintiff alleged that after a half-hour, he started to experience shakiness, nervousness, irritability, chills, and lightheadedness. He claims that when he asked about getting food, defendant Young responded in an "uncaring and rude" manner. A blood glucose check was administered and showed a low blood sugar level, after which graham crackers were provided. Plaintiff further alleged that at approximately 6:30 p.m., a staff member brought meals and snacks for the diabetic inmates.
On June 27, 2019, defendants moved to dismiss the complaint pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim for which relief may be granted. On January 7, 2020, the magistrate judge issued a report and recommendation recommending that the motion to dismiss be granted.
This matter is before the court on plaintiff's objection (Doc. 20) to the magistrate judge's report and recommendation. If a party objects within the allotted time to a report and recommendation, the court "shall make a de novo determination of those portions of the report or specified proposed findings or recommendations to which objection is made." 28 U.S.C. §636(b)(1);
Courts ruling on a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6) construe the complaint in a light most favorable to the plaintiff, accepting all well-pleaded allegations in the complaint as true, and determining whether plaintiff undoubtedly can prove no set of facts in support of those allegations that would entitle him to relief.
The magistrate judge correctly concluded that plaintiff's official capacity claims for money damages against the defendants as employees of the State of Ohio are barred by the Eleventh Amendment.
The magistrate judge did not err in finding that no claim had been stated against Joseph Murphy as Health Care Administrator of the Belmont Correctional Institution. To establish liability under §1983, a plaintiff must plead and prove that a defendant is personally responsible for the unconstitutional actions which injured him.
Plaintiff's objection does not specifically contest the above findings. Rather, plaintiff simply reargues that he has stated an Eight Amendment claim. To establish an Eighth Amendment violation based on the failure to provide medical care, a prisoner must show that he has a serious medical condition and that the defendants displayed a deliberate indifference to his health.
The deliberate indifference prong is a subjective component which focuses on the prison official's state of mind, requiring something more than mere negligence, but something less than acts or omissions for the very purpose of causing harm.
The court agrees with the finding of the magistrate judge that the allegations in the complaint do not rise to the level of a constitutional violation. This is not a case involving the complete failure to provide medical care. Rather, plaintiff alleges that Nurses Young and Cowgill failed to follow the specific protocol in place and that they should have provided him with a meal or snack sooner than they did. A complaint does not state an Eighth Amendment claim merely by pleading that the plaintiff disagrees with the treatment provided by the institution.
As a general rule, a patient's disagreement with his physicians over the proper course of treatment alleges at most a medical-malpractice claim which is not cognizable under §1983.
The court also agrees with the determination of the magistrate judge that plaintiff has failed to allege sufficient facts from which it could reasonably be inferred that these defendants were "aware of facts from which the inference could be drawn that a substantial risk of serious harm exists,"
Having reviewed the report and recommendation and plaintiff's objection, the court finds that plaintiff's objection is without merit. The court overrules plaintiff's objection (Doc. 20), and adopts the magistrate judge's report and recommendation (Doc. 17). This action is hereby dismissed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1915(e)(2)(B)(ii) for failure to state a claim for which relief may be granted. The court also certifies pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1915(a)(3) that, for the foregoing reasons, an appeal of this court's order adopting the report and recommendation would not be taken in good faith, and plaintiff is denied leave to appeal