Hospital liens are common in bustling, metropolitan cities with diverse populations like the ones found in Washington DC. A hospital lien is a special right granted by statute to hospitals and emergency service providers. When a hospital or emergency room treats a patient who was injured by a negligent party, they have a right to recover money from the negligent party that caused the patient’s injury. They are entitled to this before the patient can have whatever is left after the hospital or emergency services bills are paid. If there is not a negligent third-party being held responsible for the injured victim’s bills a hospital cannot enact a lien.
When someone is injured because of someone else’s negligence, or reckless or malicious behavior, they typically have the right to seek monetary compensation through a personal injury claim. Common reasons that a personal injury victim is awarded compensation are for their medical, hospitalization and emergency services bills. As much as an injured person and their family may want to keep this money because they feel that they are owed it after their harrowing experience, the injured person will only see the money that is left over from an award amount that is in excess of the what the hospital and emergency services liens entitle these entities to.
For more information on hospital liens in Washington DC, and how they might affect your or a loved one’s personal injury claim, you may find it beneficial to enlist the help of an experienced personal injury law firm that has lawyers who are licensed to practice here.
The law firm of Cohen & Cohen has been successfully protecting the rights of injured people and their families in Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia for 30+ years. We know that when someone is injured or taking care of someone who is injured, they often have a hard time managing their regular jobs and duties, and cannot take on trying to figure out how they are going to keep afloat financially in the immediate and distant future. When a person or a family loses a loved one unexpectedly, their grief can be overwhelming. Having to think about paying for the medical care that did not save their loved one’s life can often feel like a swift, hard jab to a person’s heart and soul.
While the compassionate lawyers at Cohen & Cohen know that money cannot instantly heal a person’s injuries nor will it ever be able to replace what a loved one brought to a person’s life, it can help to make other aspects of life less trying. Beyond the compensation that a hospital or emergency service providers are entitled to with their liens, a personal injury victim and/or their family may be able to recover for:
- Loss of wages
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of quality of life
- Loss of abilities
- Loss of childcare
- Loss of household management
- Loss of spousal support (loss of consortium)
- Loss of benefits
- Loss of parental guidance
- Loss of sibling companionship
- Funeral costs
- Burial or cremation costs
If you think you may be in need of help from a personal injury lawyer who understands how hospital liens in Washington DC may affect your case, contact Cohen & Cohen, today.
