8 Ways to Pay Your Medical Care After a Car Accident

Introduction

Car accidents can endanger both your health and your finances, so it pays to understand how to cover medical care and expenses while waiting for your personal injury settlement.

If you require medical treatment after being injured in a car accident, you should prioritize your health rather than avoid treatment due to perceived costs.

Beyond this, personal injury settlements are largely based on the cost of medical care, which includes diagnosis, medications, treatments, and rehabilitation.

If you delay getting medical treatment or skimp on the quality of care to shave a few bucks off the price, you not only risk harming your health, but you could also weaken your insurance claim. One of the best ways to ensure you are fully compensated for your accident-related injuries is to seek appropriate medical care.

MedPay or PIP Auto Policy Coverage

Medical Payments insurance, commonly abbreviated as MedPay, provides coverage for injury costs. This coverage extends to you and all passengers in your vehicle when involved in an accident, regardless of who was at fault. MedPay limits are typically low – less than $10,000 – and coverage only applies to medical expenses. If you can prove you were wearing a seatbelt when the car accident occurred, some MedPay policies double the available coverage.

If you live in a state where no-fault insurance applies, your auto insurance policy will include Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. This coverage pays for reasonable medical treatment required by drivers and passengers following a car accident. This applies regardless of who caused the crash. PIP will also pay for lost income and replacement services you need to hire due to your injuries.

Uninsured Driver Coverage

Although almost every state has laws requiring vehicle owners to carry auto insurance, estimates suggest that up to one in eight drivers are uninsured.

At the time of writing, 22 states require auto insurance policies sold in those states to include uninsured motorist coverage. If this is not legally required, you will have the option to purchase this extra coverage.

With uninsured motorist coverage, you can recoup the costs of your medical care if you are injured in an accident involving an uninsured at-fault driver or in a hit-and-run.

Private Healthcare Insurance

If your employer provides a healthcare insurance plan, it is a safe and reliable way to ensure you get the medical treatment you need after a car wreck. You will need to pay any deductibles or copays out of pocket, but you can recover these costs later upon settling your claim.

Make sure you keep complete medical bills so you can submit them with your personal injury claim. You are entitled to compensation for the full value of the medical care required, rather than only the amount you pay out of pocket or the lower payment made by your healthcare insurance plan.

Once your claim has been processed, it is quite likely you will hear from the health insurance company. If there is any possibility the claim could hinge on the liability of someone else, the insurance carrier will do all it can to exploit this.

Health insurers do not pursue the victims of car accidents directly. That said, they still expect reimbursement from your settlement with the at-fault driver’s insurer. This underscores the importance of seeking the total value of your medical care when claiming your personal injury compensation.

VA or Medicare Coverage

VA healthcare benefits typically cover all those who actively served in the U.S. military, air, or naval services, as long as they did not receive a dishonorable discharge. The VA website outlines the specific requirements for eligibility. In some cases, coverage extends to the spouse and dependent children of the service member.

Original Medicare is divided into two parts: Part A and Part B. This program is available to people over 65 in the United States who have paid into the system.

Part A covers surgery, lab work, and hospital stays. Part B covers physical therapy, medical equipment, doctors’ visits, X-rays, and various outpatient services.

Medicare covers 80% of the cost of qualified medical expenses. If you want to cover the remaining 20%, you can purchase a Medigap policy.

By contrast, Medicare Part D covers the cost of approved medications.

CHIP and Medicaid

CHIP (the Children’s Health Insurance Program) is a joint state and federal program providing medical care coverage for children.

Medicaid is a federal program administered by states. It provides healthcare coverage for those with low incomes or disabilities, and also offers coverage for pregnant women.

If you are in a serious car accident while uninsured and need medical care you cannot afford, you should seek guidance from a hospital social worker or financial services coordinator.

If your personal injury claim involves children, you should retain an experienced personal injury attorney to maximize your compensation.

Letters of Protection

Even if the at-fault driver’s insurance company promptly accepts liability for its insured, it will not pay your medical bills immediately. Most bodily injury claims take months to settle. Sometimes, cases drag on for years. Of course, your bills are mounting, and you could face financial duress worrying about your accounts going into collections.

There are many ways to pay for medical care after an accident. However, if all else fails, an LOP (letter of protection) can be beneficial.

An LOP constitutes a promise your attorney makes to protect the interests of the medical provider. Your attorney achieves this by paying your medical bills out of the settlement funds. In return, the provider holds your account from collections pending the resolution of your case.

By retaining legal representation after a car accident, you can ensure your attorney safeguards your medical accounts from collections by sending each medical provider a letter of protection. As an accident victim, you cannot give an LOP to a doctor or hospital directly, so make sure you hire an experienced personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after the accident.

LOPs are legally binding agreements between you, your lawyer, and the medical care provider. Letters of protection buy you time to settle your claim without undue hassle from creditors.

Bear in mind that if your claim doesn’t settle or if you lose your case at trial, you will be personally liable for all outstanding medical bills.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance

If you are injured in a motor vehicle accident while performing your work duties, you are eligible to apply for workers’ compensation benefits.

All eligible workers are entitled to benefits such as medical coverage. These benefits apply even if you were at fault for the accident. However, benefits do not apply if you intentionally did something illegal, such as driving under the influence.

Lawsuit Loans

If all else fails, lawsuit loans can be a solid way to pay for your medical care after an accident. Uplift Legal Funding provides non-recourse funding to plaintiffs nationwide for living expenses and medical treatment alike.

Unlike traditional loans, lawsuit loans are only repaid if your claim is successful. That means you can get the treatment you need without having to worry about bills piling up if you lose your case.

Call us today at (800) 385-3660 or apply online.