How to Pay Medical Bills During a Brain Injury Lawsuit

How to Pay Medical Bills During a Brain Injury Lawsuit

• June 30
• Evans/Reilley
• Personal Injury

If a loved one was involved in a severe accident, you may wonder how will you pay medical bills during your brain injury lawsuit. A serious brain injury can leave a victim with lifelong disabilities and medical and rehabilitation needs. If you have no health insurance, or not enough to cover the bills, this can be a major concern.

The Evans/Reilley Law Firm may help you pursue compensation, including payment for the victim’s medical care. We have successfully represented personal injury plaintiffs for more than 15 years, including those suffering from traumatic brain injuries (TBI). As a small firm, we offer personal attention that’s hard to find at a large corporate law office. To learn more about how we can help you and your family, call us at (512) 732-2727.

TBIs Can Happen in Any Kind of Accident

Brain injury medical care is highly specialized, can take a long time, and is incredibly expensive. If there are severe, permanent injuries, medical care is only the start. Next may come physical therapy, occupational therapy, and mental health care. Depending on the severity of the injury, the victim may never work again to be a future source of health benefits.

Brain injuries happen in many different accidents. It can be from a slip and fall, motor vehicle, motorcycle, bicycle, or pedestrian accident. If, after our investigation, we find at least one party responsible for the injuries, we can file an insurance claim. Depending on the case’s facts, there could be multiple parties and insurance companies facing possible liability.

Do I Have to Pay Medical Bills Out of My TBI Settlement?

The point of the claim, and a lawsuit if the claim doesn’t resolve, is to compensate you for the injuries you suffer. You should also receive payment for past, present, and expected future care.

But an insurance company won’t pay for treatment until you prove your claim, either by providing enough evidence during settlement negotiations or at a trial. Until your case settles or the insurance company pays after a successful trial, there needs to be another way to handle your medical costs.

How Your Medical Bills May Be Paid or Postponed

There are different ways your care can be paid for, or at least payment be put off until your case resolves.

1. Health Insurance

Many of our clients have private health insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid before their accident. That coverage should continue, but those sources will want to be repaid by the party responsible for your accident. You may be asking, do I have to pay medical bills out of my TBI settlement? Since there’s “no free lunch,” yes. Normally the insurance provider would be reimbursed (at least partially) through the settlement negotiations or a jury verdict.

2. Auto Insurance

Insurers would also want your healthcare to be paid as much as possible through your own vehicle insurance (if the accident was vehicle-related) until that coverage is exhausted. Part of your coverage should be personal injury protection (PIP) coverage, if you have it. It’s extra coverage worth paying for because of these situations.

PIP covers your medical expenses, up to certain limits, while your claim against the at-fault driver is pending. Insurers must offer PIP to Texas drivers as part of auto insurance coverage, but you can decline it. Without PIP, your health insurance should pay for many of your medical bills. But, if the accident causes something serious like a brain injury, your bills may be more than your policy’s limits.

3. Hospital Lien

If you have no insurance, the hospital could put a lien on your claim’s recovery. A lien is a legal way to force someone to pay a debt. Before you could enjoy the proceeds, you’d have to work out payment with the medical lien holder. The good news is, you’d receive needed medical care without paying for it up front, but you would pay eventually.

4. Letter of Protection

Another way to pay medical bills during a brain injury lawsuit is through a letter of protection. Our office writes this to whoever is treating you, asking them to wait for payment until your case resolves. Healthcare providers often agree because it’s another way to ensure at least some payment in the future.

An Experienced Brain Injury Attorney is Here for You

If Evans/Reilley is retained, we will find a way to get you medical care, no matter what kind of accident you suffered. We help all types of accident victims, whether or not they have insurance. Your situation won’t be anything new to us. We will get it done as we have for thousands of others. The fact that we deal with healthcare providers and insurance companies, so that you can focus on recovery, is one of the most critical services we provide.

Our Austin traumatic brain injury attorney