Quite often, my clients are surprised when I tell them that when you recover money for them in their lawsuit, that they are going to have to take a portion of that money and pay it back to the health insurance carrier what the carrier paid for their medical treatment. Clients are usually very surprised by this, so we talk about this in the very beginning to make sure that they are aware of these circumstances up front and there is no surprise when the settlement check is received. That’s because insurance such as Medicare has a lien, and they’re entitled to recover money. Medicaid has a lien.
Other health insurance companies have what’s called a right of recovery or subrogation. They are entitled to get this back, and we do our best to make sure that the amounts which are being sought by the insurance company are solely related to the treatment that you had for your accident, and more importantly, that the insurance company is actually entitled to recover this amount. Some insurance companies will say they’re entitled to recovery. We have to get the plan documents for that insurance company to determine that under New York law or federal law, they are, in fact, entitled to recover this money. Once we make that determination, we then will make sure that all the claims are related to your accident, and we will attempt to negotiate a lower amount to be paid back to the insurance company because you’re the injured person. You’re the one who deserves the fair compensation for your injuries and we will do our best to make sure you receive that compensation.
If you are in need of legal counsel in regards to a personal injury in New York, please contact The Law Offices of Jonathan D. Sands and we would be happy to assist you.