In many Pennsylvania accidents, victims are fortunate enough to escape with scrapes and bruises, or a simple broken bone that heals within a matter of weeks. Catastrophic injuries, on the other hand, are extremely disruptive to an accident victim’s life.
Besides getting in the way of normal daily activity, these kinds of injuries often make it hard or impossible to earn a living. The good news is that a qualified attorney can help take out the guesswork on how you are going to afford long-term care, either at home or in a dedicated facility.
Why Car Crash Victims Need Long-Term Care
Unfortunately, there are a wide range of injury types frequently sustained in car wrecks that may drastically interfere with your quality of life. Those injuries may make normal activities extremely difficult.
Depending on how you are injured in the crash, you could end up dealing with cognitive or emotional issues from brain damage, ongoing pain, reduced mobility, and other permanent changes.
Due to the weight and size of a vehicle versus the relatively frail human form, even a lower-speed crash can be devastating. The chances of a catastrophic injury increase drastically in accidents involving fast speeds and larger vehicles like cargo trucks or SEPTA buses.
Specific catastrophic car crash injuries that can easily put a victim in need of long-term care may include the following:
- Amputations (partial or full loss of a limb)
- Burns and scarring
- Internal organ damage
- Paralysis
- Nerve injuries
- Serious bone fractures
- Spinal cord damage
- Traumatic brain injury
- Vision loss
A Skilled Attorney Can Help You Recover Damages for Long-Term Care
When another driver’s negligence causes you harm, that person may become liable for your damages. Most people already know that compensation from an insurance settlement or successful personal injury case against the at-fault party could include costs like lost wages and medical expenses.
While recovering damages associated with those costs can help keep your head above water, there is a crucial catch to remember. Car accident victims only have one shot at recovering monetarily. Once a settlement has been approved, there won’t be any further compensation forthcoming for that crash.
That can be a big deal for an injured driver or passenger suffering from ongoing issues like chronic pain, physical disability, or traumatic brain injury symptoms. Your need for regular treatment or even round-the-clock care at a nursing home might continue even though the accident is long in the past.
That means your long-term care needs must be taken into account ahead of time when negotiating with insurance or presenting your case to a jury. Once you reach the point of maximum medical recovery where your condition is no longer expected to improve, your full damages could involve costs like:
- Adaptive equipment
- In-home care expenses
- Long-term care bills, such as for a nursing home or assisted living facility
- Lost earning potential if long-term disability forces a change in your profession or prevents you from going back to the workforce.
- Physical, occupational, or language therapy
- Rehabilitation
For the best chance at recovering all these costs you may be owed, you need to retain an attorney to investigate the circumstances surrounding the accident. When that process is complete, your legal advocate can establish who is liable and what act of negligence led to your accident.
If you are in a situation where you already require long-term care, you don’t want to have to handle any of that yourself. Instead, allow an attorney to take care of the heavy legal lifting, as well as communicating with the insurance provider so that you can focus on your health and well-being.
Contact an Experienced Philadelphia Car Accident Lawyer if You Need Long-Term Treatment
Are you or a loved one worried about covering the costs of long-term care after a car accident? Gary Heslin wants to hear about your case and help you recover financially from a crash caused by negligence. To get started, call and schedule a consultation at 215-332-0300 or get in touch through our online contact form here.
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