Who Pays My Medical Bills After A Texas Car Accident?

The at fault party should be responsible for your medical bills.  If they have insurance, the money should come from the insurance.  You may also have coverage on your car insurance policy if you have full coveage.  Coverages like MedPay, and Personal injury protection can also be used towards medical bills.

As always, if you have been in a car accident contact an experienced Personal Injury firm to represent you and explain the process.

Gene Burkett

Texas is an "at-fault" state, which means the driver who caused the crash is ultimately responsible for your medical bills — but their insurance company won't pay while your claim is still being investigated or negotiated, which can take months. In the meantime, you have several sources that can cover treatment, and understanding them upfront prevents unnecessary financial stress or medical care you put off out of worry about cost.

Your health insurance. This is often the fastest way to get treated. Your health insurer pays your provider under your normal plan, subject to copays and deductibles. Important detail: if you later recover a settlement from the at-fault driver, your health insurer typically has a subrogation right to be reimbursed out of that settlement for what they paid.

Personal Injury Protection (PIP). Texas insurers are required to offer PIP with a minimum of $2,500 in coverage (higher limits are available), though you can decline it in writing. PIP pays your medical bills and 80% of lost wages regardless of who caused the crash, and it kicks in quickly without waiting on a fault determination. If you didn't decline it when you bought your policy, you likely have it.

Medical Payments coverage (MedPay). An alternative to PIP that some insurers offer — Texas law doesn't allow you to carry both. MedPay covers medical expenses but generally doesn't include the lost-wage reimbursement PIP provides.

Treatment on a letter of protection. If you don't have health insurance, or your injuries exceed your PIP/MedPay limits, many doctors and specialists will treat you based on a letter of protection — an agreement that they'll be paid directly out of your eventual settlement rather than billing you now.

Hospital and EMS liens. Under Texas's hospital lien statute, a hospital or ambulance provider that treats you can place a lien on your future settlement to guarantee payment. These liens get resolved (and often negotiated down) when your case settles.

Uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage. If the at-fault driver has no insurance or not enough to cover your damages, your own UM/UIM coverage — if you carry it — can step in.

Workers' compensation. If the crash happened while you were on the job, workers' comp may cover your medical care regardless of fault, separate from your claim against the other driver.

None of these sources are mutually exclusive, and a lawyer's job includes making sure they're coordinated correctly so you're not paying out of pocket for something insurance should cover, and so any reimbursement claims against your eventual settlement (from health insurers, PIP carriers, or hospital liens) get negotiated down rather than eating your recovery.

Sorting out who pays what — and in what order — is exactly the kind of behind-the-scenes work that determines how much money actually reaches you at the end of a case. 

Ultimately, you do. However, if you have a competent attorney, the attorney and his team will work with you to get your bills covered, pay for your legal expenses, and have some additional money for future expenses.