Ethylene Oxide/Sterigenics Updates

Articles Posted in Insurance Issues

The politicians that we send to Washington enjoy the greatest healthcare in the world. If they or their spouses or kids get sick, they have immediate access to the finest doctors and hospitals, and the best and most advanced medicines, treatments, and therapies. They will never have to worry that someone in the family might die from an illness that their insurance doesn’t cover, or that they won’t be able to make their mortgage payments or send their kids to college because they had to use the money instead to pay for medical care.

Who pays for this extraordinary medical care– and peace of mind–you might wonder?

You and I do, of course. We (the taxpayers) pay for 72% of the insurance premiums that secure this coverage. We also pay for the special tax breaks that our elected representatives get-and no one else in the country gets-that make it much easier for them to purchase dental or vision insurance, and the free care they get-but no one else in the country gets– at medical facilities in Washington DC, and at military hospitals.

(1) Insurance adjusters are paid employees of the insurance company. They are skilled at negotiation and are advised by experienced insurance company lawyers who know the law. Together, they know all the strategies to keep you from hiring a lawyer and to get you to settle your claim quickly for as little money as possible. They are not your friend. They are working against you, actively trying to see if they can get you to accept little to no money at all to settle your claim. They may tell you things that are not true, and even pretend that you are not entitled to compensation, to see if you will fall for it. You should not be talking to them.

(2) Insurance companies hope that you do not hire an experienced attorney. Because they know that, if you do, they are almost certainly going to have to pay you more money. They will tell you that you do not need an attorney. And they will lose no sleep at night over the fact that they are a billion-dollar company with an army of lawyers on retainer to protect their rights (and money), but will tell a single mom with no legal training, who has just been in a serious car accident, that she shouldn’t get a lawyer to protect herself. They prey on accident victims who need the money quickly–which, truthfully, is most of us–by making a lowball offer that they hope you will accept without hiring an attorney who will tell you how terrible their offer is. An experienced attorney will know how much your case is worth and will help you get the compensation you deserve. The insurance company has a lawyer to look out for it. You deserve the same protection.

(3) Do not give the insurance adjuster a recorded statement. A common trick of insurance adjusters is to try to get a recorded statement from you that will damage the value of your claim. They may try this when you are still in shock from the accident. They may–in a very friendly way–ask you to guess about facts relating to the accident, when your guesses may hurt you. The bottom line is that they know what they are doing, because they do it all day long. But you don’t. Most people who’ve been in an accident and wind up on the phone with an insurance adjuster have never been through that kind of thing before. And their instinct is to want to be nice and helpful to the adjuster, never believing that the adjuster is trying to trap them into giving damaging answers. Stay off the phone with them. Don’t let them record you.

Imagine being involved in a serious motor vehicle accident that results in significant personal injuries, medical bills, and lost wages. Under these circumstances, you would be correct in assuming that the insurance company for the person who caused the accident and your injuries would be “on-the-hook” to compensate you for your losses.

However, what happens if the person who caused your accident had very little insurance or none at all?

Lately, I am encountering more and more clients who have been seriously injured in automobile accidents by negligent drivers with little or no insurance. Most drivers don’t think about the importance of uninsured (UM) and underinsured (UIM) motor vehicle coverage until it is too late. The UM and UIM coverage from your own automobile insurance policy can protect you from a situation where you have been seriously injured by someone with inadequate or no insurance coverage. A personal injury attorney can help you secure full compensation through your UM and UIM coverages.

Whether it be in a car accident, slip and fall, construction accident, or any other incident where you are injured and it is not your fault, your number one concern should be getting better. Sadly, for many folks, a close second to that concern is, “without health insurance, what do I do about my medical bills?” The purpose of personal injury claims, whether they be injury lawsuits in court or claims settled through insurance companies, is to get full compensation for the victim — including payment of medical bills. What many injured people do not realize is that from the time you are injured until the time your claim is resolved, those medical bills need to be dealt with. A good personal injury attorney can help you with that process. Whether it be getting payment plans set up, getting the bills deferred, managing liens that may be filed, or uncovering medical payment coverage you never knew you had, an attorney is your best resource for getting medical bills not only potentially paid at the close of a matter but also managed throughout the process. Personal injury attorneys are skilled at finding available insurance coverage and resolving medical liens, which can mean not only smaller bills but also fewer headaches in getting those bills resolved. If you are injured and it is not your fault, contact an experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible so you know what your rights are. Trying to navigate things like medpay coverage, medical liens, lien reductions, the common fund doctrine, and other matters related to medical expenses is extremely difficult for someone who is not experienced in these matters. Do not shortchange yourself with something as important as getting better and getting full compensation for your injuries.

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