At the Nava Law Group, P.C., our Houston, Texas personal injury attorneys know an accident can change your life in seconds.
No matter what type of accident you were hurt in, whether it was a car wreck, motorcycle crash, boat collision, or pedestrian accident, the costs associated with your immediate and ongoing care is going to be expensive. When our clients are severely hurt, suffering from burn injuries or brain injuries, they can require a lifetime of care, which can cause serious financial difficulty almost immediately.
If you were hurt in an accident in Harris County, chances are you are already receiving medical bills from the emergency room or your physicians. Making matters worse, if you are too hurt to work, how are they going to get paid?
Mounting medical bills cause severe stress that can keep you from fully healing. Our Houston personal injury attorneys will outline solutions to financial trouble caused by the crash, starting with holding the negligent party who caused your injuries accountable for your recovery.
In the meantime, here are a few tips to contain your medical bills while we work on the best outcome available for your case.
Tip One: Use Your Health Insurance When Seeking Medical Care
If you have health insurance, be sure to submit your card for each physician visit. We understand that not all providers may be inside your network, so there may be expensive charges or out of pocket costs associated with your care.
Keep a record of all costs you have incurred because of your accident, including payment receipts and statements from your physicians outlining your insurance coverage and outstanding balances.
Tip Two: Check Your Auto Insurance Policy for Medical Payment Insurance
Depending on your car insurance coverage, your policy may include medical payment insurance or Med Pay.
Med Pay is an optional, add-on insurance option that must exist within your current coverage to use, which means you cannot add it after an accident occurs.
Unlike standard health insurance, Med Pay does not restrict the network of physicians you can use and does not require you to meet a deductible.
Med Pay is subject to subrogation, which substitutes the obligation of the debt or insurance claim from one person or party by the transfer of any associated rights and duties against the 3rd party.
However, the provision is purchased with coverage restrictions including the overall coverage amount, and often contains conditions that require you to pay the provider back if you recover compensation from the other driver’s insurance company.
Med Pay does not cover lost wages as part of its agreement, which can leave you in a difficult position as your regular monthly bills begin to mount.
Tip Three: Check Your Auto Insurance Policy for Personal Injury Protection
All car insurance coverage in Texas begins with $2500 in Personal Injury Protection or PIP. However, policyholders can deny the coverage to lessen their payment, making it optional insurance coverage. PIP can also be increased to cover more than $2500, resulting in incremental changes to the premium cost. If the coverage was not rejected in writing when you obtained the coverage, then you will have it as a matter of law.
PIP coverage cannot be combined with Med Pay. When choosing coverage, if you added either option to your policy, it will be one or the other. Both options cannot apply at once.
If you have PIP coverage, it can ease the strain of economic hardship, including covering medical bills and 80% of your lost wages after you have been hurt in a collision.
What If I Do Not Have Health, Med Pay, or PIP Insurance Coverage?
People who lack health insurance, Med Pay, or PIP coverage may not have the resources needed to pay for medical bills, rehabilitation, lost wages, and other costs associated with serious injuries.
If you require medical care after your collision and do not have the insurance coverage to help soften the financial blow it will cause to your livelihood, contact our experienced personal injury attorneys at the Nava Law Group, P.C. in Houston at (713) 218-2400 to schedule a free consultation. We will help determine the financial recovery you deserve now and going forward.
