When a person is seriously injured in an accident, the medical bills for the initial treatment are often just the beginning. For many Florida accident victims, serious and catastrophic injuries often lead to long-term or even lifelong medical needs. This can include ongoing medical treatment, rehabilitation, adaptive devices, home modifications, and even in-home or residential care.
If your injuries were caused by another person, then you can pursue a personal injury lawsuit to recover money for your losses. Any settlement for a serious injury case should include money both for current medical expenses as well as future medical expenses, including long-term care. Our Vero Beach personal injury lawyers will fight to get you the full compensation that you deserve for all of your losses, including medical bills, lost wages, emotional distress, and future medical care.
Gould Cooksey Fennell advocates for clients throughout the Treasure Coast region who have been hurt in all types of accidents. We represent individuals in serious injury claims arising from car accidents, motorcycle accidents, boating accidents, slips and falls, dog bites, medical malpractice, and more. Contact our law firm to schedule a free initial consultation with a Florida personal injury attorney.
What Are Future Medical Expenses?
In a Florida personal injury case, you may be entitled to recover money for all of your losses. This typically includes compensation for your economic and non-economic damages. In cases involving intentional or reckless conduct, you may also be awarded punitive damages as a way of punishing a wrongdoer.
Economic damages include money for all of your past, current, and future financial expenses connected to the accident. Examples of economic damages include property damage, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, medical bills, and future medical expenses. Non-economic damages pay for intangible losses, like pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, emotional distress, scarring, and disfigurement.
Future medical expenses are considered a type of economic damage. The goal of this category of damages is to pay for reasonable and necessary medical care that an injured person is expected to need as a result of their injury. For example, if a person suffered multiple broken bones in a pedestrian accident, they might need surgeries, physical therapy, and other medical treatment even after a settlement has been reached or a jury issued a verdict in a personal injury case.
Unlike past medical expenses, which are documented by invoices, bills, and receipts, future medical expenses are projected costs. They are meant to ensure that an accident victim isn’t responsible for paying out-of-pocket for medical care that may be needed for months, years, or even decades into the future.
Future medical expenses may not be a part of every personal injury settlement or verdict. They are most commonly an issue in cases involving serious or catastrophic injuries, such as:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Amputations
- Spinal cord injuries and paralysis
- Orthopedic injuries that require multiple surgeries
- Severe burns
- Birth injuries
- Nerve damage
Essentially, any injury that results in permanent damage or disability may lead to compensation for future medical expenses. If the injured person requires ongoing medical treatment for the rest of their lives, then they will likely be entitled to money for their future medical expenses.
Types of Future Medical Expenses
Future medical expenses can include far more than just routine doctor visits. Depending on the injury and its severity, long-term care costs can include a range of services and accommodations. This may include:
- Ongoing medical treatment, such as follow-up visits, pain management, and surgeries or procedures
- Rehabilitation and therapy, including physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, cognitive rehabilitation, and vocational rehabilitation
- Prescription medication and medical supplies
- Assistive devices and medical equipment, such as wheelchairs, prosthetic limbs, walkers, braces, hospital beds, oxygen equipment, and communication devices
- Home modifications, including wheelchair ramps, widened doorways, roll-in showers, lowered countertops, stairlifts or elevators, and bathroom safety features
- In-home care and personal assistance, such as home health aides, skilled nursing care, personal care attendants, and respite for family caregivers
- Assisted living or long-term residential care
Long-term care may be needed for years or for the remainder of a person’s life. This type of care can be incredibly costly, especially if a person has a serious disability and requires a high level of care. Our Vero Beach personal injury attorneys will use their skill and experience to get you maximum compensation to cover not only your current expenses but also your future medical care and treatment.
Proving Future Medical Expenses in a Florida Personal Injury Case
In Florida, an injury victim can recover future medical expenses that are reasonably certain to be incurred as a result of their accident. Broadly, this means that there must be “competent evidence,” not speculation, to show:
- Your need for future medical care; and
- The anticipated cost of that care.
Typically, medical expert testimony is required to establish the need for future medical care as part of a personal injury lawsuit. A life care planner is often consulted to develop a report to document the need for long-term care. The life care plan can then be used as part of settlement negotiations or in court to prove future medical expenses.
The life care planner will interview the accident victim to learn more about their life before and after the accident, and how their injury has affected them. They will review medical records and conduct research to estimate the cost of future medical care, such as medications, surgery, and in-home medical care. Taking into account inflation and the accident victim’s projected life expectancy, the life care planner will finalize an estimated number for the cost of long-term care.
In addition to a life care plan, other documentation is often used to prove future medical expenses. Medical experts may testify about the nature of the injury, the permanence of the condition, the type of future treatment required, and the expected duration of care. Their opinions must be based on medical records, examinations of the accident victim, and accepted medical standards of care.
Economic and financial experts may also testify or draft reports to give their opinion on the amount of compensation necessary to provide for an accident victim’s future medical care. Economists can opine on the present value of a person’s future medical expenses, along with how inflation and rising healthcare costs will affect these costs. They may also testify as to the long-term impact of these medical needs on a person’s financial stability.
Future medical expenses can be incredibly costly, particularly in cases where a person will require significant ongoing treatment and care. Insurance companies often challenge future medical expenses in an attempt to reduce or even deny this category of damages. They may claim that:
- Certain treatments are not necessary.
- The injury is not permanent.
- The injured person had pre-existing conditions.
- The costs are speculative.
- Cheaper alternatives to the proposed medical care exist.
Our experienced Vero Beach personal injury lawyers will counter these arguments with credible evidence and expert testimony. We understand insurance company tactics and how to push back against them. In every case, our goal is to get our clients the money that they deserve for their injuries.
Why Having Legal Representation Is So Critical in Long-Term Care Cases
If you were involved in a minor accident and had minimal (if any) injuries, you might be able to resolve the case on your own, without the help of a lawyer. However, if you had more serious injuries that will require ongoing medical care, then you absolutely need a Florida personal injury attorney to fight for your right to full compensation.
Many injury victims underestimate their future medical costs because they are unfamiliar with long-term care needs and are more focused on their current expenses. Insurance adjusters play into this, downplaying the need for future medical treatment. They may also offer a settlement before the full medical picture is known.
Accepting a settlement without accounting for future medical treatment can leave you without enough money to pay for your medical bills. It can also put you in a serious financial hole if you are left responsible for paying for things like modifications to your home, hospitalizations, in-home care, and more.
Insurance companies have an incentive to minimize your damages in a personal injury case, particularly when it comes to pricey long-term care. Their goal is to resolve your case for as little money as possible, not to make sure that you have the money that you need to move forward with your life after an accident.
Long-term care costs can be life-changing. A serious injury can affect your employment and earning capacity, your independence and mobility, your mental and emotional health, and your overall quality of life. It can also affect your family dynamics, as the roles in your relationships shift and everyone adjusts to a new normal.
Proper compensation for future medical expenses won’t make you whole again after a catastrophic injury. However, it can help to ease the financial strain that comes alongside serious injuries. It can also help you live the fullest life possible, without worrying about how you will provide for your basic medical and long-term care needs.
Future medical expense claims are complex and require coordination between legal advocates, medical professionals, and financial experts. Our Vero Beach personal injury lawyers can identify all potential future medical needs, work with qualified experts, develop an accurate life care plan, and negotiate with insurance companies. If necessary, we can also take your case to trial to get you the money that you are entitled to under Florida law.
Without experienced legal guidance, future medical expenses are often seriously undervalued or overlooked. Our law offices will fight to get you the full amount of money that you need for your long-term care, using our experience, knowledge, and connections to expert witnesses to prove your case.
Help for Injured Floridians in Long-Term Care Cases
Recovering future medical expenses for long-term care is one of the most important and most challenging parts of a Florida personal injury claim. Future medical expense damages are vital to ensure that injury victims are not forced to choose between their health and their financial stability. Our law firm will advocate for you to help you get the money that you need for all of your losses, including the care that you will need in the future.
At Gould Cooksey Fennell, we offer skilled legal representation for clients in the greater Treasure Coast area who have been hurt in all types of accidents. We handle all personal injury claims on a contingency fee basis, which means that you’ll never pay a fee unless we recover money for you. To learn more or to schedule a free initial consultation with an Indian River County personal injury lawyer, give us a call at 772-758-8756 or fill out our online contact form.
