Car accidents can be extremely traumatic and damaging. If you were injured, chances are you’ve been dealing with doctor’s appointments, hospital stays, x-rays, MRI scans, and other costly medical visits. After you’ve been injured, dealing with hefty medical bills is often the last concern you want to focus on, especially if you are not fully recovered. Before you let stress and confusion get the better of you, make sure you know what to do with your medical expenses after an accident.
Medical Expenses
If you had to receive immediate care, you likely had an emergency room visit after your accident. In the event that your situation was particularly dangerous, you might have also had an ambulance ride or a helicopter evacuation. These emergency services are not without cost. While your health and wellbeing come first, the cost of these necessary services are likely the last thing on your mind.
Once you’ve made it to the hospital, the doctors might order scans, X-rays, MRI scans, and other expensive tests. If you have to remain in the hospital, they will charge you for your stay as well. Later on down the road, you might have to pay for follow-up appointments, physical therapies, and prescription medications. Some people even suffer posttraumatic stress disorder from particularly jarring car accidents, which might also lead you to seek therapy for emotional and mental healing.
In any case, the medical expenses stack up quickly. If your injuries were caused by the negligence or carelessness of another person, you should not have to pay for the cost to repair those damages. However, it can take a while for such compensation to kick in.
No-Fault Compensation
Kansas is one of the few “no-fault” states for car injury coverage. This means that, regardless of who is at fault for the accident, those injured in a car crash are not responsible for paying their medical bills on an ongoing basis. Your automobile will pay some, or all, of your medical bills after an accident, but if the bills exceed a certain limit, you may be left to obtain the rest on your own.
Car Accident Lawsuits
If you were injured because of another person’s carelessness or negligence, you can file a lawsuit against the guilty party in order to seek compensation. This compensation can help cover loss of wages, medical bills, pain and suffering, and other damages. However, it can take time for this to happen.
Whatever your health insurance does not cover will be covered by your auto insurance’s no-fault policy. However, whatever is left over between the two will fall on your shoulders until you can seek compensation from the guilty party.
Injured in an accident? We can help. To get started on your automobile accident case, contact Ralston, Pope & Diehl, LLC to schedule a free consultation.