It is common for clients to ask whether they should see a chiropractor after a car accident. Many clients wonder who pays for a chiropractor after an accident or how much a chiropractor costs.
Can a Chiropractor Help With Car Accident Pain?
Chiropractors promote healing and relieve pain by manipulating the spine and soft tissues in the body following an injury. However, they are not medical doctors so there are some limitations on what they can do to help.
Chiropractors treat pain caused by injuries to the soft tissues without orthopedic involvement (i.e., broken bones). Many chiropractors are highly knowledgeable about ligament repair, nerve damage, and non-surgical treatment methods.
Two Important Steps to Help your Lawyer When Seeing a Chiropractor
When you see the chiropractor after a car wreck, you need to follow two critical steps. You can help your lawyer help you by following these steps.
First, it is important to keep careful track of all your appointments and to attend your appointments. Maintaining a consistent care regiment is critical to your health and so you have the best recovery possible.
When you have detailed records of your treatment, you can pass the information to an attorney who can represent you when dealing with the insurance company or when presenting your claim to a court. To recover for your injury, you must be able to prove its cause and extent. Documentation is everything.
Second, it is important to follow your care provider’s instructions carefully. Rest, apply hot and cold compresses as instructed by your chiropractor, and perform any stretches or exercises they recommend. Until your chiropractor releases you, don’t perform strenuous movements or return to normal activities.
Throughout your accident recovery process, remain open to guidance on overall health and wellness.
Giving yourself ample time to recover requires listening to your body and your care team. It’s impossible to predict how long it will take you to feel better because every recovery is different and every person is different. To eliminate pain and return to pre-accident health, you should see a chiropractor as long as necessary after an accident.
How are Medical Bills Handled with Chiropractic Care?
When you suffer an injury in a car accident, your settlement may cover all your medical bills with a balance remaining or what you have paid out of pocket.
A personal injury claim can cover the cost of medical treatment. In many instances, the providers all bill separately. In other words, there are many bills to keep track of. It is important to have an attorney involved as early as possible to help keep track of all the different providers. Here are just a few you would expect to see in an automobile injury case:
- Ambulance or EMS bills
- Hospital bills
- Radiology bills
- Physician bills
- Chiropractor bills
Unlike some of the other medical providers above, many chiropractors bill at the conclusion of care. If not, you will need to keep detailed records of your payments and it is often best to let your lawyer know what chiropractor you are seeing.
How Much Is an Average Car Accident Settlement With Chiropractic Care?
Many factors impact the amount of a settlement after a car accident, including how it happened and who was at fault. Each case is unique. The factors can include:
- Issues involving who is at fault
- Lost wages
- The severity of your physical injuries
- Any permanency from your injuries
- The total cost of your medical care
- The extent and reasonableness of your care
Compensation for pain and suffering may also be considered by the insurance company and courts, which will vary according to the circumstances of the case.
Can Your Insurance Company Challenge the Medical Care You Receive from a Chiropractor?
Insurance companies often try to challenge whether chiropractic treatment was reasonable. There are common arguments among insurance adjusters that chiropractors’ bills are too expensive, that treatments are too lengthy, or that if the claimant really needed medical attention, they would have sought treatment from a “real” physician.
The insurance industry makes these arguments routinely, even though they are not true. There is science behind the therapeutic methods offered by chiropractors.
The truth always comes to light no matter how hard insurance companies try. Jurors will give the chiropractor’s testimony the weight it deserves if the chiropractor is competent and if the injury is real.
It is the responsibility of orthopedic surgeons to surgically repair injuries. But, not all injuries need surgery. Chiropractic care can offer high-quality and high-efficacy treatments that have real impacts.
In most cases, the physicians recommend conservative treatment such as home exercises, physical therapy, pain management, and injections before suggesting surgery. These are appropriate treatment modalities for chiropractors. Surgery is usually the last resort for most individuals, especially people under 50. Most doctors will do all they can to relieve pain and remedy your spine without requiring surgery. Sometimes, they even recommend chiropractic care.
Establishing the Reasonableness of Chiropractic Care and Future Care with Testimony
A medical doctor can testify about the need for other treatment, such as chiropractic conservative measures of care to help avoid surgery. Having a medical doctor recommend chiropractic care can help establish its reasonableness to an adjuster or a Court.
Both chiropractors and medical doctors can make recommendations for future medical treatment, its costs, and what will happen if no treatment is provided. Testimony from a medical doctor and chiropractor can ensure that a settlement or jury verdict accounts not only for past injuries but also for future expenses following a car accident.
Cases, clients, chiropractors, and doctors are all unique. We are privileged to know many healthcare experts and their reputations at Horton & Mendez. We can help make sure you get the care you need and to build a strong case to support the reasonableness of your care.
For More Information, Contact a Wilmington Car Accident Lawyer Today
Should you have any questions about your accident, what treatment to pursue, or which physician or chiropractor to see after a wreck, please call us today. Get a free consultation from our car accident lawyers before taking any steps that might harm your case.
It would be our pleasure to assist you and your family with the legal recovery process while you concentrate on healing. We’ll handle the rest. Contact the car accident lawyers at Horton & Mendez today.
Car Accident FAQs About Medical Bills
Will my medical bills be covered in a car accident?
Maybe. The insurance company will do everything they can to limit your ability to recover. Before you talk to the adjuster, make sure to contact an attorney that can advise you on what steps to take to make it more likely that you recover your medical bills.
What if I need ongoing medical care from a car crash?
Any settlement or award you accept should compensate you for future losses as well as your present damages. Consult with an attorney to make sure you are compensated for future medical needs.