Patient/Lawyer Situation Responses
John Warren
Description
Collection
Title:
Patient/Lawyer Situation Responses
Creator:
John Warren
Date:
8/4/2002
Text:
Hello List,
I can certainly say of all the questions I've posted, this one generated the most responses. Right about 40, some humorous, some paranoid and all helpful. The most positive ones indicated that if you did get paid it would( or in their cases did) take 18 months. The rest indicated that it was a business decision, a gamble. Where the risk does not out weigh the pay off. To make it worth our while, we would have to charge lawyer rates. Some suggested to bill the insurance directly. This will be investigated. Also, letters of protection were mentioned. I'm assuming, for now, that these would vary from state to state, in terms of their effectiveness. Here in Texas, has it was explained to me, the provider at the time of settlement will be offered, by the lawyer a percentage of the settlement or wait and not get paid the full amount. At the time of settlement, there are many hands out and prosthetics is way down on that list. However, in many instances payment does not occur for 1.5-3 years and sometimes not at all. Some said that if the lawyer feels so good about the case, why don't they pony up?
So what are we going to do? The case goes to mediation in a few weeks. So we are on hold for that. Two the insurance option discussed above will be investigated. Should the mediation fail and the insurance option not pan out. Then we will approach the lawyer about covering the component cost of the limbs. I'll donate my time as long as my company does not lose money for components. This is a compromise between good business and a very real patient in need of my services. Thanks to all who responded. This has been a very enlightening experience. Definitely not covered in the Atlas of Limb Prosthetics:)
Respectfully,
John R Warren, CP, LP
I can certainly say of all the questions I've posted, this one generated the most responses. Right about 40, some humorous, some paranoid and all helpful. The most positive ones indicated that if you did get paid it would( or in their cases did) take 18 months. The rest indicated that it was a business decision, a gamble. Where the risk does not out weigh the pay off. To make it worth our while, we would have to charge lawyer rates. Some suggested to bill the insurance directly. This will be investigated. Also, letters of protection were mentioned. I'm assuming, for now, that these would vary from state to state, in terms of their effectiveness. Here in Texas, has it was explained to me, the provider at the time of settlement will be offered, by the lawyer a percentage of the settlement or wait and not get paid the full amount. At the time of settlement, there are many hands out and prosthetics is way down on that list. However, in many instances payment does not occur for 1.5-3 years and sometimes not at all. Some said that if the lawyer feels so good about the case, why don't they pony up?
So what are we going to do? The case goes to mediation in a few weeks. So we are on hold for that. Two the insurance option discussed above will be investigated. Should the mediation fail and the insurance option not pan out. Then we will approach the lawyer about covering the component cost of the limbs. I'll donate my time as long as my company does not lose money for components. This is a compromise between good business and a very real patient in need of my services. Thanks to all who responded. This has been a very enlightening experience. Definitely not covered in the Atlas of Limb Prosthetics:)
Respectfully,
John R Warren, CP, LP
Citation
John Warren, “Patient/Lawyer Situation Responses,” Digital Resource Foundation for Orthotics and Prosthetics, accessed November 6, 2024, https://library.drfop.org/items/show/219487.
