Yes, if your insurance covers your medical bills, you will need to pay them back from your personal injury settlement. Regardless of what type of insurance paid for your medical bills, you have to reimburse it once you receive your settlement.
At Laborde Earles, our team has over 250 years of combined personal injury experience, so we can answer any legal questions you may have. Our Lafayette personal injury lawyers explain how to pay medical bills out of your settlement.
Medical Bills You May Have After a Personal Injury Accident
Medical bills after an accident are overwhelming, but knowing what medical bills you could have is valuable information. Here are some of the most common medical bills personal injury victims have:
- Emergency transport: Ambulance or emergency medical transport costs for getting to the hospital after the accident occurs.
- Emergency room treatment: Expenses for initial medical screening, tests like x-rays or CT scans, stabilization care in the ER, and any procedures done.
- Hospital admission: If you’re admitted for further observation, testing, or surgery, room charges, doctor or nurse fees, and facility costs are incurred.
- Surgery: Bills for any operative procedures needed to address injuries sustained, such as orthopedic, neurological, or reconstructive surgeries.
- Prescriptions: Costs of medications prescribed during recovery, which may include pain management drugs, antibiotics, or medical supplies.
- Follow-up care: Fees for post-discharge treatment, such as physical therapy, specialist consultations, wound care, and medical equipment rentals.
- Diagnostic tests: Additional scans, lab work, or other diagnostic services to properly assess and monitor the healing of injuries over time.
- Mental health treatment: Expenses for counseling, therapy, or psychiatric care if the accident caused mental or emotional trauma.
Laborde Earles injury was great for me they took care of me very fast and professional. If for any reason I need legal help they will be who I use.
ClientWho do You Have to Pay When You Get Your Settlement?
Paying medical bills out of your settlement can seem complicated, especially if there are multiple parties you owe. But don’t worry; our team of Lafayette personal injury lawyers can help you with the following:
Paying Back Your Health Insurance
If your health insurance covered any costs related to injuries from the accident, it may assert a right to reimbursement from the settlement you receive. Your attorney will work directly with your insurance provider to determine the full amount that it paid out on your behalf for accident-related treatment.
To satisfy the insurance company’s reimbursement claim, known as subrogation, your settlement proceeds will need to pay back that total amount directly to your health insurer. This ensures that having paid your initial medical bills does not financially impact your insurance coverage.
Paying Back Your Auto Insurance
Similar to health insurance, if your car insurance paid any medical expenses resulting from the accident, it also maintains a right under Louisiana law to seek repayment from third-party funds like a settlement. The insurance company will provide your attorney with detailed statements listing all costs covered for your care after the crash.
The amounts that your auto insurer paid on your behalf are paid priority in your settlement award. Your lawyer is responsible for deducting the full reimbursement amount owed directly from the settlement proceeds and transferring it back to your car insurance company.
Satisfying Hospital and Provider Liens
Medical facilities in Louisiana that provided treatment for injuries from the accident may file liens against any settlement received to be compensated for charges incurred. According to Louisiana Revised Statutes § 9:4755, healthcare providers have 30 days to give your attorney an itemized list of costs after they file a medical lien against you.
Your lawyer from Laborde Earles then ensures that a sufficient amount of the settlement funds is withheld before distribution to pay off every valid lien that was properly filed. Direct payments are issued from the withheld settlement proceeds to each lienholder to officially satisfy the debts and close out the liens attached to your case.
I thank God for Digger & David. I don’t know what we would have done if it hadn’t have been for them.
Rick Smith | ClientHow Can a Personal Injury Lawyer Help You With Medical Bills?
Taking on the burden of medical bills alone after an injury can feel overwhelming. This is where having a Lafayette personal injury lawyer on your side provides significant benefits, such as:
- Contacting all providers to request detailed billing statements and confirm amounts owed, ensuring there are no errors or duplications.
- If insurance covers any costs, the lawyer correspondence helps to coordinate reimbursement claims or subrogation properly.
- Lawyers are experienced in medical lien laws and know the requirements for satisfaction. We directly pay liens from settlement proceeds according to legal priority.
- Negotiation skills may allow reducing bill charges from providers through settlement discussions.
- Rather than you receiving funds and then trying to sort bills yourself, the attorney pays obligations directly using settlement distribution services.
- Any remaining providers attempting further collection after the case conclusion can be addressed through your representation.
The reassurance from Digger and his staff gave me that renewed hope that it’s going to be okay down the road.
ClientHow Much do Medical Bills Usually Take From a Settlement?
There is no single exact amount or average percentage that medical bills typically represent out of a personal injury settlement. The portion allocated for medical costs will vary significantly depending on each person’s circumstances and case details.
Some of the key factors that influence how much of the settlement must go towards medical bills include:
- Type and severity of injuries sustained in the accident
- Amount of lost wages or time away from work during recovery
- Duration of treatments and physical therapy needed
- Services provided by hospitals, doctors, facilities, ambulances
- Cost of medications and medical equipment prescribed
More serious accidents resulting in higher injuries usually mean much larger medical expenses. Long-term or lifelong care can also substantially drive up bills. The large amount of medical bills that can take away from your personal injury settlement is why our lawyers emphasize the importance of negotiating for a settlement that covers all your costs.
They treated us like no other people would. Whenever we needed something they were there for us. I put my trust in them and I don’t regret it.
ClientLearn More About Paying Medical Bills Out of Your Settlement
After an accident, paying your medical bills can be overwhelming without legal help. Our team at Laborde Earles can help you understand the process of paying your bills from your settlement.
Contact us today for a free consultation and to learn more about how we can help you pay your medical bills out of your settlement.
