Pre-Existing Medical Conditions Effect on an Injury Claim
In Kansas, personal injury and accident victims are often entitled to seek financial compensation for their injuries and damages, regardless of the at-fault party. However, upon filing your insurance claims, you may experience different challenges, especially when you have an underlying medical issue. Due to this, consulting with a seasoned Kansas personal injury attorney may be beneficial to understand how your pre-existing medical conditions will affect your injury claims.
Over the years, our reliable attorneys at Adams Cross, LLC, have successfully recovered millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts for personal injury and accident victims. As your legal team, we can evaluate all of the facts of your personal situation and fully explain how your existing medical problem affects your claims. Also, we will fight for your rights and help you pursue your deserved financial justice. Our firm proudly serves clients across Olathe, Kansas, and surrounding areas throughout Lawrence, Wyandotte County, Johnson County, and the Kansas City Metro area.
What Are "Pre-Existing Medical Conditions?"
A pre-existing medical condition is an underlying or existing physical or mental health issue that an individual had prior to getting hurt or suffering a new injury in an accident. Such an existing health condition may be a disease, bodily injury, or illness.
Common Pre-Existing Medical Issues
Below are some of the most common pre-existing medical problems:
Sleep apnea
Chronic back pain
Asthma
Pregnancy
Anxiety
Epilepsy
Extreme obesity
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
Acne
Lupus
Cancer
Back and neck conditions from bad posture
Depression
Diabetes
High blood pressure
If you or a loved one has been hurt in an accident while having an underlying medical issue, you should reach out to a practiced personal injury attorney immediately. Your lawyer can educate you about how the existing health problem can affect your injury claims and help you pursue your deserved financial compensation.
How Do They Affect a Personal Injury Claim?
Furthermore, Kansas is a "no-fault" state for personal injury and auto accidents. Under the system, the accident victim will turn to their own personal injury protection (PIP) insurance to seek compensation for their medical bills, lost wages, and other out-of-pocket costs related to the accident up to the coverage limit, notwithstanding who caused the injury or accident.
Even when you have a pre-existing medical issue, you're still within your rights to pursue fair financial compensation for your injuries and damages. However, if you have exceeded your PIP coverage limit for medical expenses or suffered a serious injury, you can opt out of the no-fault system and file a third-party claim or lawsuit against the at-fault party.
Additionally, filing a third-party claim or lawsuit requires proving fault and establishing liability. To recover damages, you must prove that – alongside other elements of liability – your existing health issue was very manageable before the incident. However, the new injury or accident deteriorated your medical condition.
If you are successful in your injury claims, the at-fault party or their insurance provider will compensate you for your underlying health issue, as well as any new injuries and damages suffered from the incident. Oftentimes, the negligent party will be held liable for all your damages and reactions based on the eggshell skull doctrine.
The "Eggshell Skull Plaintiff" Rule
The "eggshell skull plaintiff" rule is a legal doctrine that addresses all accident and personal injury cases involving claimants with existing injuries or medical issues. According to the principle, the at-fault party will be held financially responsible for all injuries, reactions, and actual damages that a plaintiff suffers due to the defendant’s negligence or carelessness – regardless of whether they knew about the victim's pre-existing health issue.
The eggshell skull plaintiff rule establishes that the defendant must take the injured party (the plaintiff) in the condition they find them. However, plaintiffs may be categorized into two:
Persons with pre-existing medical issues or injuries.
Eggshell skull plaintiff – a person who is vulnerable to injury as a result of their fragile health condition.
A knowledgeable Kansas personal injury attorney can examine all of the surrounding circumstances of your personal situation, walk you through the personal injury claims process, and help recover your rightful financial justice.
Understand Your Options for Compensation
Having an underlying medical condition can bring about different issues when filing your injury claims or seeking damages after getting injured in an accident. Regardless, you're not alone. At Adams Cross, LLC, our attorneys are ready and poised to support and represent accident victims with pre-existing health conditions in their injury claims.
On top of that, we can investigate your case details and gather substantial evidence to show that the other party's actions caused, worsened, or affected your existing medical issue. In addition, we will fight vigorously for your legal rights and help you recover the maximum available financial compensation to cover your injuries, damages, and losses.
Contact us at Adams Cross, LLC, today to schedule a simple case evaluation with trusted personal injury lawyers. Our highly-skilled attorneys can guide you through the complicated procedures involved in filing injury claims and pursuing damages. We're proud to represent clients across Olathe, Lawrence, Wyandotte County, Johnson County, and the Kansas City Metro area, Kansas.