If you are seriously injured in an automobile wreck or another type of incident, you probably need significant medical care.  If any medical costs are paid by a health insurer or government benefit plan, those costs must normally be reimbursed from your recovery in settlement or trial. Your attorney needs to be familiar with this complex area of the law.

The Personal Injury Attorney Must Look Out for the Medical Lien​If either your own health insurer or the health insurer of your employer’s health plan paid any of your accident-related medical bills, it will likely seek reimbursement out of your personal injury recovery.

Can my health insurance put a lien on my settlement?

Sometimes the health insurer even hires lawyers to pursue injured accident victims for this recovery if they fail to pay it. This area of the law, known as “reimbursement” or “subrogation,” is quite complicated.

The Right of Reimbursement

The healthcare insurer’s right of reimbursement or subrogation can be different from case to case depending upon which law applies, as well as the wording of the health insurance policy itself. Your attorney must understand the implications of both ERISA and Louisiana subrogation law on your case to properly represent you and avoid unpleasant surprises when your case is concluded.

If your bills were paid by Medicaid, Medicare or the United States Government (including Tricare), your attorney must understand the different special laws and procedures under each to determine and negotiate what is owed.

If you are not insured by a health care insurer or government program, and you have unpaid medical bills from a hospital or other health care provider, they are normally entitled to be reimbursed out of your recovery as well. The right of reimbursement will be different for different types of health care providers. The rules that apply to the recovery by ordinary private hospitals or health care providers, for instance, are different from those that apply to state hospitals. Still, different rules apply to the recovery by health plans covering federal employees and military personnel.

If you were seriously injured and have medical bills piling up, Louisiana disabling personal injury lawyer Loyd Bourgeois is ready to help you! Contact us today for a free conversation about your medical bill reimbursement – (985) 240-9773.

Loyd J. Bourgeois
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Accident, injury, and disability attorney serving Luling, Metairie, New Orleans, and South Louisiana
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