Who Will Pay My Medical Bills?

Understanding How Insurance Policies and Settlements Work Together to Pay Your Medical Bills

Mitchell Hurst Jacobs & Dick, LLP in Muncie and Indianapolis

Without a doubt, the primary concern of most people who come to our law office is how they are going to pay their bills. Even in the very best of circumstances, if you have health insurance and short and long-term disability insurance, you are living on only a fraction of your typical income and you have copays and deductibles. And many people are not in that lucky situation.

At the law office of Mitchell Hurst Jacobs & Dick, we help people understand and make the best use of their insurance policies and other benefits while they wait for their personal injury case to be concluded. Our attorneys also negotiate on your behalf with insurance companies, hospitals, and other medical care providers so you can continue to receive medical care until your settlement arrives.

Handling unfamiliar financial challenges is nerve-wracking. Our goal is to make this time as easy as possible for you by giving you answers, guidance and the support you need. Contact our Indianapolis or Muncie law office to speak with an experienced Indiana personal injury lawyer at no charge.

Understanding Your Insurance

Depending on how your injury occurred, there are a number of different insurance policies or benefits that may become available to you.

• If you have health insurance, this is where your medical bills should go first.
• If you were hurt in a motor vehicle accident and the other driver was at fault, you may have a claim against the other driver's insurance company. This claim won't be settled right away, however.
• You may have under your own policy medical payment coverage that can be used to pay bills as they are incurred. This is often sold in limits of $1,000 or $5,000 and this relatively inexpensive coverage may be available to you and your passengers even if you are at fault.
• If the other driver did not have insurance, or did not have enough to pay for your expenses, you may be able to bring a claim against your own insurance company under your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
• If you were injured on the job, you will likely receive workers' compensation. If you were injured by a third party (not an employee) at your jobsite (which can happen in construction site accidents), you may be able to bring a lawsuit against another company.

Coordination of Benefits

Our experienced staff will help you coordinate the variety of benefits and insurance policies that may be available to help you. If you do not have insurance, you may be eligible for Medicaid, or other charitable programs through your hospital that can help you pay your bills until a settlement is received.

Negotiating on Your Behalf

After an insurance settlement or verdict, you will receive either a structured settlement (paid over time), or a lump sum payment. At this time, your health insurance company will seek reimbursement for payments it made on your behalf (this is called subrogation). Any hospital or doctor bills, or medical liens, that were set aside until you could pay will also now be due.

Our goal at Mitchell Hurst Jacobs & Dick is to help you retain as much of your settlement as possible so it is available for future medical care. If you did not have health insurance at the time you received care, hospitals will often charge more, rather than giving them the same discount that they give to insurance companies. We may be able to negotiate with your medical providers to accept a lesser payment.

It's important to know your rights when it comes to liability insurance and benefits. You can count on our personal injury attorneys at every step of the process. Contact the Indianapolis or Muncie law office of Mitchell Hurst Jacobs & Dick to schedule a free initial consultation, or call us toll free at 866.675.4217.

You know us, you trust us, and we are here for you.