Search results for: “”

Study Confirms No Connection Between Chronic Whiplash and Lawsuits

People who file a lawsuit after a whiplash injury are not more likely to sustain long term disability, according to research published in the June 26, 2001 issue of Neurology, the scientific Journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study, Handicap After Acute Whiplash Injury, a 1-year Prospective Study of Risk Factors, says that…
Is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder a Compensable Injury Claim?

The Financial Responsibility Act and the Uninsured Motorist Statute, are both intended to advance the interest of society in providing full compensation for accident victims. However, the Washington Supreme Court in the Daley vs. Allstate Insurance Company decision created a situation where the same person can recover compensation for PTSD-type injuries where there is liability…
Neck Pain Among Whiplash Victims Seven Years Later

By E. Paul Giersch, Attorney at Law A study by researchers from the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, published in November, 2000, reports on the association between exposure to a rear-end collision and future neck and shoulder pain.(Berglund, A, Alfredsson, L, et al. The association between exposure to a…
Interest Charges: Can Health Care Providers Charge 12%, 18% or Higher?

In the past year we have received many, many phone calls, emails and letters inquiring about the laws regarding interest charges health care providers can assess on overdue patient accounts. This article is intended to answer those questions. All health care providers at some time will experience delays in reimbursement. For example, a patient may…
Dr. Waddell Evaluates Pain Behavior Tests in Medical Exams

In 1980, Gordon Waddell, M.D. drew attention to non-organic signs or beavioral signs in back pain patients and attempted to integrate them into modern concepts of pain and illness behavior. His paper, published in 1980, described five types of non-organic physical exam signs that may suggest psychological factors are playing a role in a patient’s…
The “Litigation Explosion”: Myth vs. Facts

A review of recent court caseload statistics shows that there has been a decline in personal injury or tort litigation, not a “litigation explosion.” Actually, tort cases make up only a small percentage of court cases. Contrary to what the insurance industry gets the media to portray, most Americans who have been injured by the…
Medical-Legal Aspects of Seat Belts

It is common knowledge among Washington drivers that state law requires the wearing of seat belts when operating a motor vehicle. (RCW 46.61.668). It is a safety rule with which few persons disagree. Before state law mandated the installation of safety belts and their use in 1990, auto accidents regularly inflicted severe and gruesome injuries…
PTSD, Automobile Collisions and Other Injury Causing Incidents

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a greatly misunderstood diagnosis frequently made with individuals who have been traumatized physically and emotionally. There is no doubt physical trauma caused by motor vehicle collisions, trip and falls, pedestrian or bicycle collisions, head injuries as well as the violent wartime or criminal incident contexts can and often does lead…
Vehicle Restraints for Elderly Occupants

This article examines medical-legal issues surrounding injuries sustained by elderly adults involved in a motor vehicle accident. The federal standard for occupant protection in frontal impacts is set forth in the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208. See 49 C.F.R. § 571.208 (1993). This federal regulation sets minimum performance requirements for motor vehicles involving…
Understanding PIP Coverage For Today’s Health Care Provider

Background. “PIP” is an abbreviation for personal injury protection insurance. It is just one part of an auto insurance policy that today’s health care provider needs to be aware of when treating patients with injuries. The personal injury protection part of a policy is actually a contract between the insured (your patient) and the insurer…