My Doctor Won’t Treat Me After an Accident in Harris County, TX

My Doctor Won’t Treat Me After an Accident in Harris County, TX

Your Guide to Medical Liens and Getting Care While Pursuing a Personal Injury Claim

You were hurt in an accident in Northwest Harris County. Car accident? Slip and fall? Construction injury? You pick up the phone and dial your primary care physician’s number only to find out that they will not treat you. Sound familiar? Unfortunately, this is a common and extremely frustrating scenario for injured Texans. However, just because your doctor or health insurance won’t treat you doesn’t mean that you cannot get quality care or pursue your personal injury case. Here is why your doctor won’t treat you and what to do about it.

Why Won’t My Doctor Treat Me After an Accident in Harris County?

Doctors in Texas frequently refuse to treat accident victims because they do not want to become involved in the litigation process or deal with auto insurance billing or giving a deposition. The solution to this problem is almost always a Letter of Protection, which is commonly used in combination with medical liens.Why won’t my doctor treat me after an accident in Harris County or throughout Texas? Doctors have every legal right in the state of Texas to refuse care (unless they are engaging in some other form of discrimination). It is typically not personal. They just don’t want to get involved in:

Litigation Involvement: 

Doctors generally do not want to be deposed by attorneys, have their medical notes subpoenaed, or have to spend hours at a trial as an expert witness.

Billing Uncertainty: 

Doctors don’t want to bill auto insurance (slow payment and a fight every time) or the at-fault driver. If they are going to treat you, they want the best assurance that they will be paid and paid in a timely manner.Waiting or failing to get treatment because of a refusal to treat by your doctor is one of the worst things you can do. The defense insurance company will fight you tooth and nail. Any gap in treatment or failure to follow a doctor’s orders is ammunition for the insurance company to try to prove that your injury wasn’t serious, wasn’t caused by the accident, or has healed.

The Solution:

The Letter of Protection

When you retain a personal injury attorney in Harris County, usually the first thing they do is send a Letter of Protection (LOP) to the treating specialist.

A Letter of Protection is a formal written agreement between your attorney and a medical provider (usually a specialist, therapist or imaging center) in which your attorney promises the provider that they will pay the bill directly out of any eventual settlement or verdict, rather than you having to pay it out-of-pocket up-front or while your case is pending.

This gives the medical provider the comfort they need to know that they will be paid. In turn, it allows you to get the immediate and necessary care without having to pay a dime until after your case settles.

Understanding Medical Liens Under Texas Law

The LOP is the primary document but is only as good as the medical lien which it promises and the legal requirement behind that lien

.1. Hospital Liens (Texas Property Code Chapter 55)

Under Texas law, if a hospital provides emergency care to someone injured in an accident, the hospital has the right to file a hospital lien against any eventual settlement or judgment that the injured person receives from the at-fault party. The reason for the hospital lien is to give the hospitals a way to be paid back for the emergency services they provided to the injured person.

To file a valid hospital lien under Texas Property Code Chapter 55, there are certain rules which must be strictly complied with:72-Hour Rule: 

The injured person must be admitted to the hospital within 72 hours after the accident

.100-Day Rule: 

The hospital lien only covers the charges incurred for the first 100 days of the hospitalization.

50% Cap: 

The amount of the hospital lien cannot be more than 50% of the total amount recovered (settlement or judgment).

2. Provider Liens (Lien by Contract)

Even though the only party that has the “absolute” right to a lien under state law is the hospital, almost all private doctors or clinics that end up treating an accident victim on an LOP basis are really being given a lien by your contract with your lawyer (a Lien by Contract). They have first priority for payment out of any settlement funds (ahead of your attorney and hospitals).

Your Attorney’s Vital Role in This Process

Assisting you with medical treatment and liens is one of the most important things that your personal injury attorney will do for you:

Finding a doctor: 

We have a long-standing relationship with a network of quality specialists (orthopedists, neurologists, etc.) in Northwest Houston who understand how to properly document accident injuries and who also accept LOPs.

Negotiating medical liens: 

After your case settles, your attorney is in charge of negotiating with all lien holders (hospitals, doctors, health insurance companies) in an attempt to reduce the amount of money owed. This is one of the most important parts of the process, because every dollar that is reduced goes straight into your pocket.

Protecting against second-lien lawsuits:

If all liens are not paid and satisfied by your attorney before you are given your settlement check, then those medical providers are free to come after you personally. We make sure this does not happen so you can sleep well at night.If you are having difficulty getting medical treatment after an accident in Houston or Harris County or are already stressed by having medical bills or health insurance denials, contact The Law Office of Shaw Clifford today. We can quickly issue an LOP to ensure that you get the necessary treatment, then fight on your behalf to try and maximize your ultimate recovery.

Contact The Law Office of Shaw Clifford