Plenty of people are still dealing with accidents that happened over the summer, and even if your crash happened just last week, you probably have questions about what to do with your medical bills. Should you pay medical bills after an accident? What happens if your medical bills remain outstanding for weeks or months? What should you do if collectors attempt to berate you into making payments on the debt?
Medical debt can absolutely destroy stability in any household, and if it comes as a result of an Atlanta car accident, then there’s additional financial damage. It’s likely that anyone in a crash with a high volume of medical bills also has to deal with the property damage from the crash and time off at work. We know that medical bills are only part of your crash claim, but we want to help you understand exactly how to handle these bills while you’re in the claim resolution process.
When Should You Pay Your Medical Bills?
Medical bills associated with an auto collision should only be paid after any insurance claim reaches full resolution. That means when the victim has a compensation check in hand, then the medical networks or health care providers should receive their payment. However, we’re talking about one of the most aggressive industries in the nation, a healthcare provider, hospital, or doctor’s office is not going to wait weeks while your insurance company figures out their end.
There are options to help deter collections and aggressive collecting tactics that some medical networks or their billing departments use. However, many people aren’t aware of these options and are bullied into making payments on medical bills during the claim process. Then, there’s an ongoing issue that if your claim isn’t handled properly you might not receive compensation for the payment you’ve already made towards the medical debt.
What if You Can’t Pay the Medical Expenses from the Crash?
Most people don’t have the means to pay tens of thousands of dollars in medical expenses. To that extent, you might be worried that what you have in your bank account and your savings is all you have a manager household because you’re unable to work at the moment. Programs that help injured people financially get by when they’re out of work often take weeks to kick in.
If you don’t have the funds to pay medical expenses, then wait. In fact, you should never pay medical expenses until the claim has been resolved. With an experienced attorney, it’s possible for you to get a medical lien so that these expenses aren’t constantly in your face, and you’re not receiving phone calls to make a payment.
In 2019 the American Journal of Public Health found that medical expenses were a prevalent factor in 66.5% of bankruptcy filings. Often the people facing severe medical expenses have also lost time at work, and they may not have been responsible for the injury. Car accidents are the primary example of a person sustaining a serious injury and undergoing financial hardship because of another person’s actions.
What Should Full Compensation Include
Full compensation for a crash should cover all of the damages. Not only should it cover all of your medical expenses, including travel expenses to see specialists, and the cost of prescription medications, but other damages as well. For example, if your car was a total loss, it should cover the Blue Book value of the vehicle. For full compensation, you should also seek recovery for emotional damages, pain and suffering, and lost wages.
Get Support – Fight with an Atlanta Auto Accident Lawyer
Even with good insurance, car insurance, and health insurance, it’s likely that there’s going to be a substantial amount of medical debt if you sustained any type of injuries. Even going to the emergency room to get checked out because First Responders suggested it can leave someone with thousands of dollars in medical bills. That’s if you go in everything was all right, but if you were admitted to the hospital, that might be thousands of more dollars, and if you stayed for a few days, you’d be looking at tens of thousands in medical debt.
At the Weinstein firm, we believe with great conviction that as the victim, you shouldn’t have to pay any of this medical debt as the victim. If you were arriving in accordance with Georgia’s rules of the road and another driver failed to give you the care you deserved, they should be footing the bill. Don’t get stuck with medical debt that you shouldn’t be responsible for; call the Weinstein firm to take control of your crash claim now.
