Seriously. This was one of the biggest mistakes I made after I was injured in my accident. If I had consulted a lawyer they would have told me to seek treatment and not stop until I was fully recovered or had done everything I could to recover and was not getting any better.
Now I have a "gap in treatment". Gee, wonder why. I am the ringmaster of my own little three ring circus. I had a ruptured ovarian cyst that could have killed me, moved, had other tests when they found a cyst on my kidney in the MRI I had done after my accident. My daughter was seeing a different specialist a couple times a month. She was sick with pneumonia and I had to keep her home for days everytime she got sick.
I had a doctor that never referred me to the appropriate specialist, I was just told to get an MRI and when it came back "clean" was told I could go to a chiropractor or PT. I didn't like the idea of a chiropractor so I figured I'd try PT. I scheduled my first appointment which I believe was a month away from the day I scheduled it. I had to cancel it and never rescheduled because I didn't trust them to not mess me up more without me being examined by a specialist. So I just lived with the daily pain and stiffness and figured it would go away. Why shouldn't it? I was fit and healthy and had never had problems with my back or leg and foot before the accident. I also tried to be positive and think about how much worse it could be but wasn't. I also figured that after a couple of months of not seeking treatment that I wouldn't be covered by the insurance. Well guess what, I'm in more pain now and now the insurance company is telling me that my claim is closed! However, I have not reached a settlement witht the other parties insurance because I am still seeking treatment.
The lawyer I consulted with told me that after a year, I can't prove that there is any correlation between my current back pain and cramping/pain in my right buttocks accompanied by hamstring weakness and foot numbness. Apparently, it is perfectly acceptable for the other parties insurance to assume that I did something to my body after I stopped treatment that is giving me these symptoms. He said we can fight it but the ""gap in treatment" will make it very difficult. Hmmm. I was healthy, very active, exercised and pain free before my accident and after it I have never been the same and am plagued by chronic pain, muscle weakness and numbness. Gotta love the insurance companies.
So I am trying to focus on just getting treatment and hopefully regaining my previous healthy and pain free existance. Don't be a fool like me. If you are injured in an accident, call a lawyer!!!
2 comments:
Beth, my daughter Kara was in a car accident last year, Dec 5th, she fractured her pelvis, and had months of physical therapy. Fortunately we did contact a lawyer immediately, she was hospitalized, Dec5, 6, came home Dec 7th last year. To date we still haven't settled, it wasn't her fault , the other insurance is just disputing the cost of the settlement. Our final date id Dec15th to hear something, or we are going to court over it. FYI I didn't realize how much the lawyer takes though, 1/3 of settlement total. We are stuck with medical bills ect. so really its about 50-50 between you and the lawyer once everything is settled.
Marilyn's Money-I am so sorry to hear about your daughter's car accident and injury : ( I hope you are able to get a fair settlement. At least you have a lawyer to navigate all the legal stuff. The insurance companies are vultures but the lawyers take their cut don't they?
I'm not sure if I will use a lawyer. I'm waiting to see if the insurance company is going to cover all the bills once they get my medical records. I don't know if it's worth pursuing anything for my current treatment since I had a gap in treatment.
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