health insurance

Published on: November 28, 2022

Injured In A Car Accident? Why You Should NOT Tell Your Doctor To Bill Auto Insurance.

Crash!!! You hear the sound of crushing metal. Your body is slammed around the inside of your car. What is happening? In an instant, another driver ran a red light and slammed into you. In the hours and days after the crash, you start hurting badly. You are worried about your health and future. Now, you are dealing with pain, medical care and bills. Today, I want to talk about those medical bills and a common problem in many Alabama car accident cases.

When you see the doctor, it’s easy to tell him/her just to bill the other driver’s automobile insurance company. After all, the other driver was at fault. The insurance company for that negligent driver should pay your bills! While this sounds reasonable, it’s a mistake. It’s a mistake to tell your medical providers to bill the automobile insurer. It’s a mistake made by many accident victims. It’s a mistake that is often encouraged by insurance adjusters and even billboard lawyers who are not looking out for you! It can have a tremendous impact on your injury claim.

It’s an easy mistake to make. First, the other driver should pay. Second, many adjusters imply that you should send your bills. Many adjusters imply the insurance company will pay your medical bills as incurred. Keep in mind, these adjusters are just trying to get information from you.

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Published on: July 18, 2022

Car Accident? Confused About Getting Your Medical Bills Covered?

By Jeff Blackwell

In a split second, a car accident can change your life. Crash!!! You are injured. Suddenly, you have a lot of worries. How do I get medical care? Will I heal? Can I keep working? Who will pay the bills?

Most people have very little experience handling the difficult medical (and other) issues following a serious car crash. It’s easy simply to sign whatever the medical provider or lawyer puts in front of you. However, some providers (both medical and legal) are not looking out for your best interest.

What’s the number one goal following a serious injury? Get better as quickly as possible! Healing is (and should be) the top priority. I know medical bills and costs are one of the most stressful issues for injured people. So, how should medical bills be handled in a car accident?

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Published on: November 22, 2021

Work Comp Insurers Paint Misleading Picture Of Medical Costs!

By Jeff Blackwell

Generally, workers compensation provides two important benefits. The first is medical care. The second is money you receive for your impairments or disabilities. These are essential benefits for working men and women facing a serious work-related personal injury. I’ve helped injured workers for more than 25 years. Almost every single client has the same worry — How quickly can I get my medical care and resume my normal life. Medical care and recovery are the main concerns. Most injured workers start the process hopeful.

Too often, insurance carriers then ignore, delay or deny their need for medical treatment. If you’ve suffered a serious work-related injury, you may have experienced the frustration of waiting on a work comp adjuster to call or approve care. You may have experienced the tricks used by insurance carriers to avoid providing necessary treatment. I understand. You do have options.

Let me get to the point of this post. Recently, I read an article about a misleading study produced by the National Council On Compensation Insurance (NCCI). What is the NCCI? Take a look at its Board of Directors! It’s a virtual who’s who of the biggest work comp insurance executives. You think they might be biased just a little! Years ago, the tobacco industry had similar groups telling consumers that smoking was healthy!

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Published on: February 26, 2021

Congress Considers Consumer Relief To End Surprise Medical Billing

By Jeff Blackwell

Congress is considering legislation to protect people with health insurance from receiving “surprise” medical charges. You know, the huge charges for receiving medical care out of your insurance company’s network. The proposed legislation would stop exorbitant and surprise emergency charges from out-of-network doctors and hospitals.

How Do Exorbitant Out-Of-Network Medical Charges Impact Alabama Accident Victims?

You have to laugh at some of the “legal” blogs ghostwritten by marketing people for law firms. They follow a formula. Step 1, express “horror” over some problem or injustice. Step 2, build-up the problem. Step 3, carefully avoid providing any information that would educate consumers. Otherwise, they may not call. Step 4, tell the reader he or she needs to call you as the keeper of solutions. Step 5, stuff the blog post with keywords that have nothing to do with the topic but may be important to your legal services. I disagree with this “formula.” I think blog posts should be authentic and should provide real information or opinions.

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Published on: August 31, 2020

How Settlement Mill Lawyers Harm Car Accident Victims: Bad Deals On Medical Reimbursement / Subrogation

By Jeff Blackwell

In a prior post, I discussed the secret arrangements where settlement mill lawyers funnel most of their clients to a favorite chiropractor who then runs-up the medical bills for settlement. The downside of this secret arrangement is that the injured person never receives proper care but is left paying the bulk of their settlement money to the lawyer and chiropractor. It’s a bad deal for the personal injury victim. It’s a shameful practice by settlement mill lawyers who neglect their clients.

What about injury victims who have health insurance or health coverage? Here’s a quick scenario. You suffered an injury in a car accident. After the wreck, you go to the local hospital and then follow-up with your doctors. You probably pay some co-pays. But, your health coverage pays many of the bills. If you have health coverage, you should use it to get the treatment you need. You then hire a lawyer to make a claim against the at-fault driver. Medical bills and personal injury claims can be a confusing topic. But, it’s a very important topic if you are facing a serious injury. If you would like more information about medical bills and personal injury cases, click the link below to my article discussing the topic.

The insurance company knows which lawyers go to court. Choose wisely. If you are seriously injured in a car accident, the choice of lawyer can make a huge difference in the insurance company’s offers to you. If you hire a settlement mill lawyer who is not willing to go to court, the insurance company is likely to pay less for your case. Why would the insurance company pay a fair settlement if the adjuster knows your lawyer will not go to court? Why would the insurance company pay a fair settlement if the adjuster knows your lawyer is simply advertising on billboards for volume cases that can be quickly settled? Why would the insurance company pay a fair settlement if the adjuster knows your lawyer is simply using a staff of non-lawyers to push claims through the system. But, getting a smaller settlement from the insurance company is not the only way you can lose with a settlement mill lawyer.

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Published on: December 9, 2019

I Have Health Insurance. Should I Use Health Insurance For My Alabama Car Accident Case?

By Jeff Blackwell

You suffered a car accident. In the hours and days after the accident, you start hurting badly. You need medical care. The whole process can be challenging and frustrating. When you are seriously hurt in a car crash, you suddenly have many issues. Scheduling appointments. Missing work. Transportation. Waiting for doctors. These may all be worries. Then, you start receiving bills. Lots of bills. Confusing bills. Bills can be an overwhelming worry.

If you have health insurance, you are very fortunate. You should definitely use your health insurance to pay your medical bills.

Why Should I Use My Health Insurance? Someone Else Caused The Crash.

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Published on: February 5, 2010

Does Your Personal Injury Lawyer Understand Medical Reimbursement And Subrogation Issues? The Answer Can Be Very Important To Your Bottom Line.

By Jeff Blackwell

This morning, workers’ compensation attorney Jon Gelman published an interesting note on his blog about a recent Medicare recovery case filed here in Alabama. The case involves the United States seeking to recover medical payments made by Medicare on behalf of several injured individuals.

This Alabama Medicare case raises an often misunderstood and complicated issue we must handle on a daily basis. Most injury victims have some type of health coverage that pays their medical bills. For many, coverage is provided by private insurance like Blue Cross. For others, government programs provide coverage. These government programs include Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare or the Veterans’ Administration. When we seek medical care, our particular coverage provides some level of payment. Each plan or program possesses unique rights to be reimbursed for their payments if an injured individual recovers compensation from some third party. So, you need to deal with these issues in your personal injury lawsuit.

Many personal injury attorneys seem concerned with simply signing the client and settling the claim. They want you to “call them” and they want to make a quick settlement with the insurance company. That’s it. It’s wrong. It’s bad for you.

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