How to Get Medical Bills Paid For After a Slip and Fall Injury

Don’t wait to get the medical care you need after a slip and fall accident. Explore your payment options for injury-related medical bills.

Slip and fall accidents can grow costly as the medical bills keep rolling in. You shouldn’t have to worry about paying medical expenses for injuries caused by someone else’s negligence.

Refusing or delaying medical attention after a slip and fall can jeopardize your injury claim, but medical providers expect to be paid.

Here’s what you need to know about getting your medical bills paid after a slip and fall accident.

Paying Slip and Fall Medical Bills

Don’t let worry about paying the bills prevent you or a loved one from getting necessary medical treatment after a trip and fall accident. To build a strong personal injury claim you must establish a link between the accident and your injuries.

By explaining to your medical provider when, where, and how you were injured, you create a record of how your injuries relate to the slip and fall accident. Continue treatment until your doctor tells you it’s no longer necessary.

Medical expenses form the basis for calculating your slip and fall claim value.

Arranging For Payment Before Settlement

If you have health insurance coverage, use it to cover your accident-related medical expenses. Your health insurer will expect reimbursement after your claim is settled.

If you are uninsured, you can’t be refused emergency care at most hospitals. Once your condition is stabilized, physicians have a legal right to demand payment at the time of service. If you can’t pay, they don’t have to provide further treatment.

When you’re hurt and unable to work, coming up with cash to cover medical bills can be almost impossible. For help, talk to a personal injury attorney.

Most injury law firms offer a free consultation to the injured person. If you decide to hire a slip and fall lawyer, they can offer a Letter of Protection (“LOP”) to your doctors to promise future payment for the continuing medical treatment you need now. With an LOP, you can get the care you need without being hounded by a collections agency.

Beware of “Accident Doctors” Running up Big Bills

While insurance companies use medical bills to calculate the value of slip and fall claims, they only have to pay reasonable expenses.

Avoid “accident doctors” who run up your bills by ordering unnecessary tests or treatments. You could end up paying the bills out of your own pocket if the insurance company refuses to accept the charges. You can always get a second opinion if a doctor recommends questionable and expensive treatment.

Managing Your Medical Bills and Records

At every stage of treatment for your injuries, you will be billed. These bills are some of the most important evidence in your slip and fall claim. Without that proof of a physical injury, your claim will likely fail.

It’s important to gather all the bills and records relating to your slip and fall injury. Write down a tracking list of all the medical treatments you’ve received. Think about the treatment from immediately after your injury and include all tests and treatment up to the present.

Some medical services will generate more than one bill. For example, if you have an MRI, you’ll receive one bill from the radiology department and another bill from the physician who interpreted the results.

Also, hold onto receipts for medication and other out-of-pocket expenses.

Beware of Blanket Authorizations

You are not obligated to authorize the property owner’s insurance company to request your medical records or to allow them to see personal health information not related to your injuries.

Be careful signing medical authorizations from the insurance adjuster.

Standard forms may allow the at-fault party’s insurance company to get all your medical records for the last five or ten years. If you sign an authorization form, make sure it only covers treatment for your slip and fall injuries, and only from the accident date.

Requesting Medical Records and Bills

The best way to get your medical bills and records is to contact the doctor’s office where you were treated.

You can send a written request for your medical records. Most medical providers have a separate records office, so send your request to that office. Many hospital and doctor record offices provide patients with a specific HIPAA-complaint form to request record copies.

You may have received treatment from the same doctor for years but are only looking for the records and bills related to your slip and fall injury. Be specific by providing a date range in your records request. This helps prevent you from receiving stacks of paperwork unrelated to your accident.

Always make copies of your medical bills and records. Don’t write on or mark up the original bill or record. Keep the original documents in your accident file. Only provide copies to the insurance adjuster.

HIPAA Issues with Medical Records

The federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) protects personal health information, including your medical records. HIPAA limits who can access and obtain your private information. It protects your privacy while also protecting your right to get copies of your own medical records.

HIPAA also allows each state to regulate access to medical records.

State regulations can dictate:

  • Copy fees charged for records
  • The timeframe for your medical provider to release your records
  • How long a medical provider has to store your records

You can designate third parties to receive your personal health information by signing a HIPAA authorization form. This allows the doctor’s office to release your medical records to someone other than you, like your spouse, your attorney, or the insurance company.

Authorizations allowing third parties access to your records can be revoked at any time, but the revocation must be in writing.

Don’t Short-Change Your Slip and Fall Claim

Supporting your slip and fall case with complete medical bills can help you get full and fair compensation.

When you add up your medical bills to determine your claim’s value, include the full value, not just the portion of the bill you had to pay.

If your health insurance covers some or all of your medical costs, you should still claim the full amount. The full amount means that when you’re adding things up, focus on the total cost billed. This is the amount charged for a service before health insurance copays, deductibles, or offsets from your health insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid.

Example of How to Include a Bill with a Copay

John is taken to the emergency room by ambulance after a slip and fall accident. Two weeks later, he gets billed $900 by the ambulance company and $2,000 for the emergency room visit.

John has a health insurance policy covering both of these costs, but he has a $90 copay for the emergency department services. The copay means John has to pay $90 for the ER care after paying his deductible.

When he totals his bills, John includes the $2,000 bill and the full $900 bill in his injury claim.

He doesn’t include the $90 copay or any deductible because it’s already included in the total amount billed.

Compensation for Related Damages

Medical bills are the most important part of a slip and fall injury claim, but the insurance company will consider other economic losses related to your injury.

To prove an economic loss is directly related to your injury, you’ll need to provide documentation.

For example, you’ll need verification of lost wages from your employer if you miss work because of your injury. In addition, you’ll need your doctor’s notes and medical records to verify that your injuries kept you from working.

You’re entitled to reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses, such as medication, gasoline, parking fees when visiting the doctor, and other costs resulting from your injury. You can also estimate future out-of-pocket expenses if you are still suffering from your injuries.

An Attorney Can Help Manage Medical Bills

Many premises liability claims involve bumps, bruises, muscle or tendon sprains or strains, and minor cuts. If you’ve recovered from relatively minor injuries with minimal medical treatment, you may decide to handle your own personal injury claim.

Serious injuries requiring extensive treatment are best handled by an experienced personal injury lawyer. Your attorney can manage your medical bills and seek adequate compensation for your pain and suffering. They will ensure you walk away with some settlement money after all the bills are paid.

Watch out for Medical Liens

Private health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, the Veterans Administration, and others who cover your treatment cost have the legal right to place a priority lien against your injury settlement to recover what they paid out on your behalf.

If you don’t have health insurance, the hospital or treating physicians may file a lien against a potential injury settlement to recover any portion of the medical bills you still owe.

Tackle any potential medical liens before settling your accident claim. Good communication can go a long way in your negotiations with lien holders. If you don’t have health insurance, they would rather get a reduced amount than end up with nothing if you can’t settle your claim.

Experienced attorneys commonly negotiate medical liens. Your attorney may be able to settle the lien for less than the total amount owed. The outcome means more of the settlement goes to you.