In the aftermath of a car accident, your top priority is making sure you and your passengers receive proper medical care for any injuries sustained. But how do you know if your injuries qualify as an emergency medical condition that requires immediate treatment? This is an important determination, as the answer can impact both your health outcomes and your ability to seek compensation for medical expenses and other damages.
What Qualifies as an Emergency Medical Condition After a Car Accident?
Under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), hospitals and medical facilities are required to provide emergency medical screening and stabilizing treatment to patients who come to an emergency department with emergency medical conditions. This applies regardless of the patient’s ability to pay.
So, what exactly constitutes an emergency medical condition? According to EMTALA, an emergency medical condition is:
- An acute injury or illness with symptoms so severe that lack of immediate medical care could put your health in grave danger. This includes injuries or conditions serious enough to cause possible permanent impairment of bodily functions or organ damage if not treated right away. For pregnant women, an emergency medical condition also exists if there is not enough time to safely transfer to another hospital before delivery, or if the transfer itself could threaten the health of the woman or unborn baby.
- For pregnant women experiencing contractions, an emergency medical condition exists if there is not enough time to safely transfer them to another hospital before giving birth. An emergency also exists if attempting to transfer the woman to another facility could potentially threaten the health or safety of the mother or unborn child.
Some examples of emergency medical conditions that may occur after a car accident include:
- Broken bones
- Deep lacerations
- Significant bleeding or hemorrhage
- Injuries to the head, neck or back
- Loss of consciousness
- Difficulty breathing
- Chest pain or severe abdominal pain
- Severe burns
- Spinal injuries with neurological deficits
- Amputations or partial amputations
- Shock
Essentially, any injury that is life-threatening, could result in permanent disability or damage, or requires immediate surgical intervention, would likely qualify as an emergency. Severe pain that immobilizes you or is not controlled by over-the-counter medication is also considered an emergency.
Seeking Care After a Car Accident
Ideally, EMS should be called to the scene of any serious accident so they can evaluate injuries and transport injured parties to the nearest hospital emergency room. However, you may also drive yourself or be transported to an ER by a friend or family member if possible.
When you arrive, be sure to describe all your symptoms and explain that you have just been in an accident. The ER staff will then perform a medical screening exam to determine if your condition meets the EMTALA definition of an emergency. This will likely involve questions about your symptoms, a physical exam, diagnostic tests like X-rays or CT scans, and consultation with specialists like orthopedists, neurologists, or trauma surgeons if needed.
If your injuries are determined to be minor, you may not be admitted, but will still receive stabilizing treatment like wound cleaning, pain medication, splinting, etc. before discharge. However, more serious injuries like fractures requiring surgery or injuries causing neurological deficits will require hospital admission for monitoring and surgical intervention.
Being stabilized does not mean that all of your conditions have been fully treated or resolved. It only means that your vital signs are normal, you are protected from further harm, and can be transferred or discharged safely after receiving care to mitigate the emergency. Ongoing rehabilitative care and treatment for accident injuries can continue on an outpatient basis.
Refusing Care
In rare cases, patients may refuse recommended emergency care or wish to leave before being officially discharged by a doctor. This is inadvisable from a medical perspective. But EMTALA does not allow hospitals to force treatment if a patient declines care, as long as they are mentally competent to make medical decisions for themselves.
In this scenario, you may be asked to sign a form indicating you are leaving against medical advice. Be aware that doing so means discharging yourself at your own risk without having received full stabilizing treatment. This could negatively impact your ability to seek compensation for medical expenses and also puts your long-term health prognosis in jeopardy.
Seeking Follow-Up Treatment
After an initial ER visit, don’t assume you are healed and no longer require medical care. In fact, many accident injuries like fractures, sprains, whiplash, concussions, and internal organ damage can take days or weeks to fully manifest. Get established with your primary care physician and any specialists recommended for follow-up monitoring and rehabilitation. This includes physical therapy, occupational therapy, mental health services like counseling, or appointments with orthopedists, neurologists, or other providers depending on your unique injuries.
Keep good records of all your post-accident treatment and save all receipts and billing statements to submit to the insurance claim process. Ongoing treatment related to accident injuries is key for recovering damages and proving your condition was in fact an emergency stemming from the crash.
Documenting Your Experience
Speaking of insurance claims – it is wise to create your own paper trail documenting your injuries, symptoms, and treatment timeline while the details are still fresh. This includes:
- Journaling your experience and symptoms frequently
- Taking dated photos of injuries at regular intervals to show healing progress
- Saving hospital discharge papers, doctor’s notes, imaging results, physical therapy plans – any paperwork related to your medical treatment
- Getting contact info for witnesses who can attest to accident circumstances and your subsequent condition
- Reporting the accident to your insurance company in a timely manner
All of these steps can help validate that your injuries stemmed from the accident when it comes time to seek compensation for damages.
Pursuing Legal Action
Severe injuries with mounting medical bills and lost income quickly become a financial burden after a crash. That is where an experienced Cedar Park personal injury lawyer can help guide you through the claims process and fight to recover damages.
An attorney can assist with tasks like:
- Gathering evidence to help prove fault and substantiate your injuries as emergency conditions
- Communicating with insurance companies on your behalf
- Calculating and documenting all costs related to medical treatment, property damage, lost wages, pain and suffering
- Negotiating a fair settlement or taking the case to court if needed
The skilled personal injury attorneys at Karns & Karns Personal Injury and Accident Attorneys have recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for accident victims in Cedar Park and across Texas. If you or a loved one were harmed in a crash, contact our office at 800-4THE-WIN (800-484-3946) for a free consultation on your legal options. Our team is here to help you obtain the maximum compensation possible so you can focus on healing and putting your life back together. Connect with a car accident lawyer Cedar Park today!
