Personal Injury Settlement

Health Insurance Liens on Your Personal Injury Settlement

When it comes to filing a personal injury lawsuit, there’s quite a bit an individual must think about – from things like finding the right lawyer, and the most difficult aspect, being able to run your life and pay your bills on time, while dealing with possible injuries, property damages, time off work and all the while having to deal with the trouble, as well as the stresses that are associated with going through a trial. Plus, in many instances, the individual might even be dealing with terrible health issues, and injuries as a result of the accident or the incident associated with the personal injury claim itself. When it comes to these injuries, often individuals may have trouble paying their bills, and while they might have settlement or a trial victory coming, being out of work, it may be difficult for them to pay for the medical costs upfront, or there might be an issue with their insurance and they may require cash upfront to deal with this issue. For that type of a case, this is where a company like Express Funding, known to provide the best medical and surgical funding Hoboken has to offer. Within personal injury law that that if a person or business causes harm to someone, that person or business should, at minimum, be liable for paying all medical bills stemming from the injury. So it’s no surprise that medical treatment is a common category of damages in a personal injury case. However, when health insurance comes into play, things can get a bit trickier, especially when it comes to dealing with plaintiff funding Hoboken experts at Express Funding may provide you with funds, that you believe you may need for medical bills and surgery but when there is health insurance at play, how does this effect the liability of the defendant.

What Happens When Medical Bills are Paid by Insurance?

To keep it simple, in the event that medical insurance covers your medical costs, you can still sue the defendant and they might still be expected to pay for medical damages as well. The fact is that the plaintiff probably isn’t going to end up with all the money that was meant to cover those medical bills. To illustrate how this works, consider the example of a hypothetical construction worker named Jim, who suffers injuries at work when he is struck by an earth-mover being operated by a co-worker. Jim, who has health insurance, goes to the hospital. Along with numerous minor injuries, Jim’s right shoulder is badly hurt, requiring surgery. Over the course of several months, doctors perform surgery and Jim regularly sees a physical therapist to strengthen the repaired shoulder. After deductibles, Jim’s health insurance pays for all of his medical treatment stemming from the accident, which totals $25,000. When the individual, Jim files his lawsuit against the construction company, the health insurance will generally file a lien against the lawsuit and its proceeds. When it comes to surgical funding Hoboken experts at Express Funding are required to know about such an instance, as this can affect the amount of pre-settlement funding Hoboken patients are entitled to.

How Do Medical Liens Work?

A medical lien is a demand for repayment that may be placed against a personal injury case. By filing the lien in the above example, Jim’s health insurance company is arguing, “Jim is the one who was injured, so it is his prerogative to sue. But Jim did not pay for the medical care he received for his shoulder. We did. So, if he receives reimbursement for the medical care that was provided, that money should go to us, not directly to him.” When a health insurance company issues a lien to recover any money it spent paying for your medical treatment after an accident, you (or your attorney) may be required to pay the lien under a process known as “subrogation.” The extent and strength of a subrogation claim depends upon the language used in your insurance policy, and on the laws in your state. Talk to your personal injury lawyer for details on what to expect. The fact is that when you obtain pre-settlement funding Hoboken lawyers will be able to better educate you on how such a lien will affect any funding you might have received – as when you obtained the funding you might not have known health insurance would cover things, or you may not have known they would file a lien. For those who might have accepted plaintiff funding Hoboken experts at Express Funding will be able to find a solution for you, and in many cases, you may be able to use those funds for other needs, and the additional funds or damages sought in your lawsuit can be used to pay it back. With the help of an attorney, it can be possible to get a medical lien holder to accept less than the amount they paid, and still release you from the lien. For more information on all there is to know about settlements and funding be sure to contact Express Funding of America today.