A hospital lien or repayment claim can reduce the money you receive from a Maryland injury settlement. Hospitals, health plans, Medicaid and Medicare may seek payment for injury-related care, but each follows different rules.
Which liens and repayment claims can apply?
A hospital that treated your injuries may claim payment from your recovery if it meets Maryland’s legal requirements. Those requirements include notice. The Maryland code section on hospital lien notices addresses that part of the process. A hospital lien generally covers the hospital’s charges for treating your injuries. Bills from doctors, ambulance services or other providers are separate and may still be due.
Your health plan may also seek repayment, depending on the plan and the laws that apply to it. Medicaid and Medicare follow their own recovery processes. More than one repayment claim can apply to the same settlement.
How can liens and repayment claims change your payout?
Confirmed liens and repayment obligations are often paid from settlement funds before the remaining money goes to you. The handling can vary by claim type. If you hired a lawyer, your fee agreement may also allow fees and case costs to come out of the settlement.
You can question charges that do not match your treatment or payment records. Whether a payer must reduce its amount depends on the type of claim, and a reduction is not guaranteed. These issues are common in personal injury claims when providers or benefit programs seek payment from a settlement.
Check each amount before agreeing to a settlement
Before accepting an offer, compare the repayment notices with your bills and treatment records. Gather the documents needed to check the amounts:
- Identify who is requesting payment and how much they claim.
- Get an itemized bill from each provider.
- Request a payment record from each health plan or government program.
- Compare the records with your treatment history.
- Ask your lawyer, if you have one, for a written breakdown of fees, costs and repayment amounts.
The settlement figure is not necessarily the amount you will receive. A Maryland personal injury lawyer can review the repayment claims and explain which amounts you may be able to dispute.