What is the name of your state?
Ohio
My father is in the middle of a medical malpractice lawsuit. The lawyers want to include the medical bills incurred in the amount being requested for settlement. My father has Medicare and a supplemental insurance which has paid for everything thus far. Obviously, we would pay Medicare and the supplemental insurance back if that were a portion of the settlement. My concern is that by increasing the settlement by the amount that the insurance has already paid, it will increase the percentage of what is due the lawyers upon settlement where, if the "pain and suffering" damages are not enough more than the medical bills, my father could actually not get anything out of this and could end up actually owing money to the lawyers by the time we repaid the insurance companies. I understand why the lawyers want to do this, and I am not against them getting fairly compensated, too, but I am very alarmed at the prospect that he could end up owing money instead of getting anything out of it.
I spoke to the lawyer about my concerns and she told me that it "had to be done that way in Ohio." She also said that even if they didn't sue for the cost of the medical bills that the insurance companies could come back on my father for payment if he just got a settlement just for "pain and suffering." Are both of those statements true?
Ohio
My father is in the middle of a medical malpractice lawsuit. The lawyers want to include the medical bills incurred in the amount being requested for settlement. My father has Medicare and a supplemental insurance which has paid for everything thus far. Obviously, we would pay Medicare and the supplemental insurance back if that were a portion of the settlement. My concern is that by increasing the settlement by the amount that the insurance has already paid, it will increase the percentage of what is due the lawyers upon settlement where, if the "pain and suffering" damages are not enough more than the medical bills, my father could actually not get anything out of this and could end up actually owing money to the lawyers by the time we repaid the insurance companies. I understand why the lawyers want to do this, and I am not against them getting fairly compensated, too, but I am very alarmed at the prospect that he could end up owing money instead of getting anything out of it.
I spoke to the lawyer about my concerns and she told me that it "had to be done that way in Ohio." She also said that even if they didn't sue for the cost of the medical bills that the insurance companies could come back on my father for payment if he just got a settlement just for "pain and suffering." Are both of those statements true?