Knee injury and insurnace woes

[XjamesX]

Greetings from California.
Last year I blew out my knee playing basketball for my college. I had no personal insurance to cover this, so the school's athletic policy took effect, and I was (mistakenly) told I had 15 months to have my reconstructive surgery. I immediately filled out claims, etc, and 12 months later I opted to have my surgery. The insurance company said my policy expired that week. My school admitted the boo-boo but it turns out that the insurance co never sent me or the school a notification that the policy was to soon expire. Now the school has notified the state insurance commission and still I wait. It has since been 3 months, and I cannot work so I lose money while the school and insurance co drag their feet and cause me to wait ungodly amounts of time.
Is there any legal action I could take to make speed up this process, and if they continue to drag their feet do I have any right to sue? I am losing money by not being able to work as well (sue for lost wages?).
I would hate to sue. But I need action and resolution to my woes ASAP! What are my options?
Thanks so much.

 

[ALawyer]

If you are prepared to prove that you were told by someone in a position you could reasonably rely on that there was 15 months to do the surgery with coverage, and particularly if there was good reason for trying to defer it, you would seem to have a decent claim against the school for the cost of the surgery for providing the incorrect information on which there was detrimental reliance. I hope you got it in writing or the folks there will stand up and say they told you you definitely had 15 months. (It's amazing how people who are sued start to remember things differently.)

As for lost wages, I am sorry, but I think you are OUT OF LUCK. You can still have the operation, the issue is who will pay for it -- the insurance or you and your parents.

If the school is not liable (for any reason, including denial of the promise, or a technical reason, such as possible lack of proper and timely notice to a governmental agency if it is a state or county operated school) you'd have to have the operation and pay for it yourself. I don't know what the insurance policy says, or the result from that angle, but the longer you delay seeking counsel for a sports injury, often the worse it gets.