How Can Medical Liens Affect My Settlement In Cook County, IL?

In this article, you can discover…

• How a medical lien can help you during your personal injury case.
• What to do if your settlement won’t cover your medical expenses.
• Whether or not medical liens can be waived.

Can A Medical Lien Help Me If I Can’t Afford To Pay For Treatment During My Personal Injury Claim?

Medical liens provide a way for doctors, hospitals, and medical professionals to receive payment for treatment in the event that you do not carry adequate insurance to cover your medical bills after a car accident or injury case.

A doctor will typically be paid through Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, or any other kind of medical insurance. In some cases, if there is either insignificant coverage or no coverage, you can strike an agreement with the doctor’s office, stipulating that the doctor’s office will receive payment out of a settlement.

This is a highly favorable course of action for most patients and most clients because the doctor’s office is going to receive a statutorily defined portion of the settlement proceeds. This is effectively a means of ensuring that medical professionals will be paid fairly for their work in cases where the required work will not be adequately covered by insurance providers.

Will Medical Liens Impact My Personal Injury Settlement In Illinois?

When you settle a personal injury case, your lawyer will generally be responsible for paying any outstanding liens to the physicians and hospitals that provided your care. Generally, your liens will be capped at 40% of your settlement, meaning that doctors and hospitals will receive up to 40% of your settlement payout.

This does not, however, mean that each doctor will be paid 40% of your settlement. Generally, the 40% lien cap will be distributed among the doctors who provided care during your settlement, regardless of the total payout. When I work with clients, we aim to keep this number below 40%.

What If My Settlement Won’t Cover My Expenses?

One of the enormous advantages of working with a qualified attorney is that we will fight to ensure that your settlement covers all of your expenses. There are particular legal tools we can implement to ensure that no physician’s bill or hospital debts will consume your entire settlement.

When you work with a competent personal injury attorney in Cook County, IL, we will secure for you the peace of mind that your bills will not absorb your entire settlement. In my nearly 20 years of experience, I have never had a client lose their entire settlement to medical bills.

Attorney Alexander Memmen is a seasoned lawyer based in Cook County, IL, who has helped countless clients just like you navigate the intricacies of medical lien law. With over 18 years of experience, he is prepared to assist you in reaching a favorable settlement for your medical debts so that you can return to living the life that you love.

Still have questions? Ready to get started? Contact Sharks At Law today to schedule an initial consultation.

Will My Credit Be Impacted By A Lien?

Typically, liens will not influence your credit score and will not impact your lending ability in any way. While a lien is a loan document, it is not formally filed with courts or the state. A lien will typically only be sent to the plaintiff’s attorney and, in certain cases, the relevant insurance provider.

Can Medical Liens Be Waived?

There are certain ways that liens can be waived, typically involving negotiations between your attorney and your doctor to reduce the amount of your liens. In some cases, liens can be waived, but they are commonly reduced. Especially in scenarios where your settlement is high, doctors will insist on recovering at least some of what they are owed.

What Advice Do You Have For Clients Who Feel Overwhelmed By Growing Medical Bills During Their Recovery?

I always ensure that my clients know to send any bills they may receive to my office immediately. It can be easy to stress over mounting medical bills while you are still working through your settlement, but there should be no reason to stress over this. My firm handles your medical bills and liens as a courtesy so you can enjoy peace of mind during your recovery process.

How Do You Negotiate Medical Liens To Help Clients Retain Their Settlement?

There are several strategies that we use to negotiate medical liens for favorable settlements. A number of laws exist that can help your attorney reduce what you owe on your bills, meaning there is a great deal of wiggle room when working with your lawyer.

There is also the aspect of good, old-fashioned negotiation, which can go a long way toward lowering your bills. We implement a number of negotiation tactics to ensure that our clients are in the best position to receive the highest payout possible.

Still Have Questions? Ready To Get Started?

For more information on Navigating Medical Liens In Illinois, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (312) 586-2820 today.