Should I Contact an Attorney For a Brain Injury?
A traumatic brain injury is one of the most serious and potentially devastating injuries you or a family member can sustain. Since the brain controls all aspects of a person’s life, a TBI victim can find himself or herself facing a lifetime of the following types of difficulties:
- Vision impairment
- Hearing impairment
- Balance impairment
- Mobility impairment
- Cognitive impairment
- Speech impairment
- Emotional control impairment
Unfortunately, this type of long-term disability can result in medical and other associated costs that are almost as traumatic as the injury itself. A brain injury lawyer such as one from Ward & Ward Law Firm experienced in handling brain injury cases can help you get the compensation you and your family need to cover these costs.
Initial Costs
Experts estimate that in the first six months after sustaining a serious traumatic brain injury, you can expect your medical and rehabilitation costs to exceed $500,000. This could well put you at the lifetime limit of your health care coverage, but sadly represents only the tip of the TBI costs iceberg.
Lifetime Costs
Experts likewise estimate that you can expect your annual costs to average around half a million dollars for services such as the following:
- Ongoing doctors’ appointments
- Ongoing physical therapy
- Ongoing speech therapy
- Ongoing psychological counseling
- Ongoing prescription drugs
Shockingly, if you sustain your TBI while in your twenties, your lifetime costs could very well total $15-$20 million.
Family Costs
Since insurance runs out so quickly, this means that someone in your family, such as your spouse, a sibling or an adult child, in all likelihood will have to quit his or her job so as to stay home and care for you. The costs of long-term care, either at home or in a nursing home are, after all, beyond the reach of most families. Consequently, not only do you have no income since your TBI makes it impossible for you to work, but your loved one also loses his or her income source.
Obtaining Legal Representation
An experienced brain injury lawyer can become your first line of defense against all of these catastrophic costs. He or she can determine whose negligence or wrongdoing caused the accident that resulted in your traumatic brain injury and who is therefore legally liable for your losses. He or she can also thoroughly review your medical records to assess the value of your current losses, plus those you can expect to encounter in the future. Finally, he or she can file a lawsuit for you against the negligent party and take it all the way to a jury trial if aggressive negotiations with the defendant’s insurance company fail to produce a reasonable settlement that will cover all your economic and non-economic losses now and in the future. Contact a top brain injury lawyer to discover your legal options.
