Affording Life After Catastrophic Injury: Finding Financial Resources and Support

The cost of treating a catastrophic injury can rise into the millions of dollars during a person’s lifetime. Traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, severe burn injuries, amputations and other debilitating injuries can require ongoing, long-term medical care.

How can you afford life after catastrophic injury? In the following sections we provide general information about ways to find financial resources and support to help you deal with the financial impacts of your injury.

The Financial Burden of a Catastrophic Injury

Catastrophic injuries are the most costly of all injuries. They place a great financial burden on injury sufferers and their families. The medical treatment required after such a life-impacting injury depends on the specific type of injury and its seriousness, but treatment is typically extensive and may include a combination of the following:

• Emergency medical care
• Radiology tests to determine injuries
• Multiple surgeries
• Pain pills and additional prescription medications
• Physical and cognitive therapy and other rehabilitation
• Mental health therapy and support
• Ongoing procedures and treatments
• External or internal prostheses
• Adaptive equipment
• Skilled nursing care or rehabilitative care in a facility for that purpose.

You may also require in-home caretakers to assist you with eating, bathing, dressing, and all the daily tasks of living. Changes to your home may be necessary for mobility, and you could require a specialized vehicle that fits a wheelchair or that allows you to drive, depending on your injuries.

What Are Your Financial Assistance Options?

There are various options to help pay for life after catastrophic injury. Your own health insurance will pay some of your medical costs. What is paid and how much depends on your unique health insurance policy.

If you were catastrophically injured on the job in Georgia, workers’ compensation may provide lifetime medical benefits, including authorized doctor and hospital bills, physical therapy, prescriptions, and travel expenses to and from medical appointments. It may also cover medical and vocational rehab. You could also get weekly income benefits, which is two-thirds of your weekly salary, but not more than $800 per week.

The Brain and Spinal Injury Trust Fund Commission is a program that provides grants to pay for rehabilitative therapies, assistive technologies, medical equipment, and other care. You must have a traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury that is verified by your doctor and be a Georgia resident and U.S. citizen.

Some hospitals and health care systems offer financial assistance in cases of catastrophic injury. You can speak with the case manager or financial manager for your hospital or system. Lower-income individuals may find assistance through Medicaid and other federal and state government programs. Also, consider contacting national, state, and local nonprofit organizations for the type of injury you have. They may be able to provide information about possible assistance options and may also offer supportive services.

Money Management After Injury

It can be helpful to speak to a financial advisor after a catastrophic injury. If you do not have an advisor and are working with a catastrophic injury lawyer due to your accident and resulting injuries, your attorney may be able to recommend one who focuses on catastrophic injuries. Your advisor can help you create a budget and set up a bill pay program. Even if you don’t work with an advisor, look for places where you may be able to cut unnecessary expenses. Small reductions can quickly add up.

Importantly, review every bill you receive to make sure it is correct and you aren’t being overcharged or charged for treatments you didn’t receive. Keep an organized file of all of your medical and other expenses caused by your injury.

Beyond Financial Help

While your health insurance will pay for some of your costs and you may be able to find other assistance, the truth is that catastrophic injuries are outrageously expensive to treat. And there are additional non-medical expenses that arise from catastrophic injuries. You may need someone to take care of your children, clean your house, shop for groceries, and perform other tasks. All of those things can get pricey.

There is an almost guaranteed chance that many of your costs will not be covered and you could find yourself in financial peril. But there is another possible option for paying your bills after a catastrophic injury. If your accident was caused by the negligence of another party, you can file a legal claim for compensation. Your medical bills file will be important in assessing your damages.

Through a claim, you could receive payment for losses that can include:

• All current and future medical expenses
• Medications and medical devices and equipment
• Lost wages and benefits for time missed at work
• Loss of earning potential if you can’t work at all anymore, or if you must work at a reduced level
• In-home care and household help
• Remodels to your home, such as to add wheelchair ramps
• Pain and suffering for physical pain and mental suffering
• Emotional anguish for all the distress the accident and its aftermath have cost you
• Punitive damages if the actions of the driver or party who caused the accident were especially egregious.

Every catastrophic injury case is different. If the evidence shows that you were the victim of another’s negligence, our law firm can help you understand damages to claim, possible compensation you may be able to get, and steps in filing a claim.

Contact The Stoddard Firm to Learn About Filing a Claim for Compensation

When another party’s negligence has resulted in catastrophic injury to you or a loved one, you have the right to seek monetary justice. Through an insurance claim or lawsuit, you could potentially get significant money to pay for medical bills and other damages.

At The Stoddard Firm in Atlanta, we help people injured in car wrecks, falls, work accidents, and other incidents pursue compensation. We have a long and successful track record in getting positive outcomes for clients in catastrophic injury cases.

To schedule a time to speak with an attorney, call 470-467-2200 today for a free, no-obligation consultation. As an Atlanta catastrophic injury attorney, we stand up for the interests of injury victims with focus and determination.