Personal injury cases require showing that defendants have breached their duty of care. Once you get this out of the way, you have to show that your injuries are a result of the accident in question. This is where your medical records help prove causation, an important element of personal injury law. However, the role of medical records in personal injury claims extends beyond this aspect, and you need to account for medical documentation from the moment of your accident.
Getting Medical Attention Soon After an Accident
Understanding the importance of timely medical treatment after an accident in New York is crucial for your recovery and any potential legal claim.
For Your Health
Getting the required medical attention immediately after an accident helps in the early diagnosis of hidden injuries, like internal bleeding, concussions, or whiplash. This aids in preventing conditions from worsening and may even facilitate faster recovery. Timely medical attention can also address emotional distress.
For Your Personal Injury Claim
Getting immediate medical attention creates a documented timeline, clearly linking an accident to your injuries. Any delay can make it harder to establish this connection, allowing insurance companies to argue that your injuries were pre-existing or caused by something else. Medical records generated soon after an accident also serve as vital and objective evidence.
How Medical Records Prove Personal Injury
When you file a personal injury claim, the onus to prove the extent of your injuries and the impact they have on your life rests on you. It is common for defense attorneys and insurance companies to argue that your injuries did not occur because of the accident, are not as severe as you claim, or are preexisting.
When you have medical records to back your claim, it is easy to counter their arguments. This is because your medical documentation clearly details your injuries, diagnoses, treatment plans, and prognosis.
Causation
Whether you’re up against an insurance company or a defense attorney, you need to demonstrate that the accident in question was the cause of your injuries, and your medical records serve as vital proof. While your initial emergency room reports can be useful in establishing this connection, subsequent records help build a strong narrative.
Impact on Daily Life
Another reason why medical records are crucial for personal injury claims is that they help translate the subjective experience of pain and suffering into objective, documented evidence that you can present to an insurance company or a jury.
For example, a doctor’s notes and progress reports can include a claimant’s complaints of pain, limitations on movement, and inability to perform certain tasks. Similarly, if a doctor recommends a home health aide or nursing care due to an inability to perform daily tasks like bathing or cooking, it is a clear and compelling record of the injury’s impact on daily independence.
Supporting Your Compensation Claim
Medical documentation in personal injury cases plays a significant role in supporting your claim for monetary compensation. While your medical records show the cost of existing and future medical expenses, they also play a role in establishing potential long-term costs, especially if you suffer from permanent disability or require long-term care. In addition, medical records can also support your claim for loss of earnings.
Meeting the Serious Injury Threshold
Stepping out of the no-fault insurance system that New York follows and pursuing a claim against an at-fault party for basic economic damages requires meeting a “serious injury” threshold as defined by state law. Your medical records play a crucial role in proving you meet this threshold.
This serious injury threshold to move past the no-fault system in New York stands at a minimum of $50,000. The expenses it covers include:
- Medical, hospital, and prosthetic services.
- Psychiatric, physical, and occupational therapy.
- Rehabilitation.
- Loss of earnings.
It classifies these as serious injuries:
- Fractures.
- Dismemberment/significant disfigurement.
- Loss of life.
- Loss of a fetus.
- Permanent inability to use a body organ, member, system, or function.
- Considerable restriction in using a body system or function.
- An injury that restricts you from leading a normal life for at least 90 days during 180 days after the accident.
What Kind of Medical Records Are Needed for a Lawsuit?
Medical documentation in personal injury cases can come in different forms, and you must hold on to every piece of information because there is no telling when it might come in handy. The typical medical records presented in personal injury cases include:
- Diagnosis and treatment records.
- Progress notes.
- Specialist evaluations.
- Lab results (test and imaging).
- Prescriptions.
- Invoices for medical equipment.
Conclusion
The answer to “Can I win a personal injury case without complete medical records?” is that you will likely have to encounter several hurdles along the way because the opposing party would be eager to pick holes in your statement. Remember that medical records in personal injury can make all the difference between winning and losing, and if you’re unsure about just what you need, consider partnering with a law firm that does.