How to Get Medical Treatment While Waiting on a Settlement

While waiting on a settlement, accident victims can pay their medical bills using several options, including their auto insurance, health insurance, Medicaid or Medicare coverage, and agreements with health care providers. Personal injury claims can take several months to settle while expensive medical bills accumulate. Below is more information on the available options for staying on top of healthcare costs after a crash.

A Victim’s Car Insurance

After auto accidents, victims are typically paid by the insurance companies of the at-fault drivers. However, the auto insurance policies of victims can pay for damages if they have purchased certain additional coverage. For instance, personal injury protection (PIP) or MedPay coverage usually covers medical expenses after a crash irrespective of the party that caused the accident. As a result, a person does not have to prove fault to receive compensation.

Health Insurance

Using one’s health insurance is another option that can be utilized to pay for medical bills while waiting on a settlement. It can pay for any accident-related expenses, such as in-patient treatments, physical rehabilitation, and ambulance rides. Health insurance applies after a crash as it would for other kinds of injuries or health problems.

A victim’s health insurance is likely to have co-pays and deductibles to be paid out-of-pocket. Nevertheless, with health insurance, a person can make use of the negotiated discounts, which may be unavailable with supplemental car insurance coverage.

Victims must provide hospitals with their health insurance information as soon as possible. That will enable the accident-related costs to be billed properly.

Subrogation

An injured party’s insurance provider may exercise the right to subrogation. This is the process where the provider pays the victim’s expenses with the expectation to recoup the payments after the person gets the settlement award. Subrogation is usually used when a victim is not at fault for the crash and has a strong compensation claim.

How subrogation affects a person depends on the insurance provider and the contract.

Medicaid or Medicare Coverage

A person who qualifies for Medicaid or Medicare may use the coverage to receive the necessary treatment after a crash. Nevertheless, the program may require reimbursement if the person receives a settlement.

Letter of Promise

Many healthcare providers allow accident victims to defer payments in exchange for a letter of promise. Letters of promise are agreements between victims and healthcare providers like hospitals, specialists, clinics, and family care providers. The agreement states that a provider is offering the care that a victim needs without upfront payment. The victim will, in return, make payments on the medical bills after his or her case settles.

Letters of promise are enforceable. Healthcare providers can use the signed forms to seek collections on broken agreements. Therefore, victims are advised to speak with an attorney and review the set terms and conditions before signing.

Lawsuit Loan

A lawsuit loan is known by many other names, such as a loan advance and settlement funding. With it, a victim can get a cash advance against his or her future settlement award or lawsuit judgment. The lending party will get the rights to a certain portion of the person’s settlement award.

Although this type of loan can be an enticing option for someone facing significant medical bills, it is not always recommended. It may help a victim deal with financial hurdles in the short term but cost him or her much more in the long term. Predatory lenders can offer loans with very high-interest rates. People need to understand the costs of getting lawsuit loans.

Seeking treatment immediately after an accident helps victims avoid complications. A personal injury attorney can explore all the options available for paying for medical expenses with a victim and determine what is most suitable for him or her while negotiating a favorable settlement.