North Florida Injury Lawyer Blog

An injury victim of a Florida automobile accident will need medical treatment in order to evaluate, diagnose, and treat automobile accident personal injuries related damages. Typically, there are various medical providers in each community who are willing and able to provide medical treatment to injury victims in an automobile accident. There are also many medical providers who avoid these kind of patients because the medical provider does not accept PIP or Med Pay automobile insurance as payment. Furthermore, these medical providers typically do not want to get involve with medical care that may involve subsequent litigation. If a person has PIP (personal injury protection) insurance, there are typically a number of doctors who will accept this type of insurance as payment for ongoing treatment for injuries related to an automobile insurance company The type of medical providers who accept this form of payment in the community may include chiropractors, physical therapists, occupational therapists, massage therapists, neurologists, pain management doctors, medical doctors, orthopedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, family practice doctors, and physical medicine doctors. It is important for the medical providers to understand the necessary documentation and codes in payment schedules. In addition to PIP insurance, the medical provider may also be able to obtain payment through Medical Payment (otherwise known as Med Pay) type of automobile insurance coverage. If health insurance is available, the medical provider may accept health insurance for the medical care that is not covered by PIP or Med Pay insurance coverage. Finally, a medical provider may choose to provide treatment on what is normally called a Letter of Protection (LOP) or promise to pay.

It is typically a business and philosophical decision as to whether a medical provider will render care for an automobile insurance personal injury victim. The type of treatment provided and testing ordered should be left to the doctor within his or her discretion. A Florida personal injury lawyer can advise a client as to his or her legal rights, the value of the case, the available insurance policy limits, and the documentation that helps support the a claim or case for compensation for injuries and related damages.

In Orange County, Florida, it was reported that four people were exposed to carbon monoxide poisoning at an apartment complex. The complications caused by the carbon monoxide poisoning required medical care and treatment with a hospitalization. See Four People Hospitalized in Central Florida with Carbon Monoxide Poisoning.

Carbon monoxide poisoning can lead to serious personal injuries and, in some instances, the death of unsuspecting victims. The problems and dangers associated with carbon monoxide poisoning are amplified by the fact that carbon monoxide is a colorless and odorless gas that enters a person's respiratory system instead of oxygen.

The Northeast Florida AHEC - New Directions in Community Health - works to educate the public including families and children about the dangers and health risks of tobacco. Tobacco has been proven to cause serious health problems and literally kills thousands of people every year. Tobacco, whether in the form of cigarette, cigar, dip, tobacco patches, and even dissolvable tobacco tabs are all dangerous. Tobacco companies are quite adept at marketing, packaging, and advertising their products. Don't be fooled by a new package or delivery of the dangerous substance / product known as tobacco. Go to the website www.northfloridaahec.org

Summer heat is now here in Florida including North Florida (Jacksonville, Orange Park, St. Augustine, and Fernandina Beach) in full force even though it is still only the month of May. It was recently reported that the Jacksonville Fire Rescue responded to a situation where a 1 year old child was left in a hot car outside of a local government building. The child was locked in a car with temperature outside exceeding 90 degrees. Fire fighters broke through the window to get the child out of the car. Some estimate that the temperature inside of a vehicle can be 60 or even 80 degrees higher than the outside temperature. Just a few minutes in a vehicle can cause serious personal injury to children, the elderly, and, yes, even pets. It can also lead to an arrest and criminal prosecution in some cases for abuse and neglect. There are two typical reasons for leaving someone in the vehicle unattended: convenience and / or forgetfulness. The dangers presented by a hot car or hot vehicle are too great and should not be ignored or underestimated. An easy reminder system is to put a stuffed animal in the back seat. When the vehicle is parked, move the stuffed animal to the front seat and remove the child and other passengers from the vehicle. See First Coast Experts: Don't Leave People or Pets in Hot Cars this Summer.

Urgent care centers are on the rise in North Florida and across the nation. These centers promise convenience and consumer-friendly pricing and are popping up everywhere along highways and stripmalls. According to the Urgent Care Association of America, the number of urgent care centers is estimated to have increased by 8% since 2008 despite the recession. However the UCAA predicts its estimation may be low because what defines "urgent care" across the nation is not so clear.

In Jacksonville, Florida, these urgent care centers are very popular. For example, within a 50-mile radius of downtown Jacksonville, at least 32 clinics provide walk-ins with timely care. A dozen of these North Florida clinics belong to the chain Solantic. These clinics offer care during regular doctors' hours as well as nights and weekends. Michael Critzer, director of operations of Physians Medical, another upcoming urgent care center in North Florida, accredits the popularity of these new facilities to the fact that nowadays people need instant gratification, nobody likes to wait.

Emergency rooms are the main competitors of urgent care centers. However, the urgent care centers charge far less than the ERs. Some worry about the quality of care given by the centers. However, urgent care centers are so new that there has not been enough time to adequately study and compare the quality of care given to that provided at an emergency room. If you would like to read more on this topic please see Urgent Care Centers on the rise in North Florida.

Falling in a Florida grocery store, mall, movie theater or just on the sidewalk in Northeast Florida can be embarrassing, but it can also lead to serious injuries. If you are injured by as a result of aFlorida slip and fall incident, some simple but important actions can help protect and enforce your legal rights.

1. Report the Incident. Make sure that the incident has been reported to an employee or a manager and write down the name of that person.

2. Witnesses. If there were witnesses to the incident or witnesses to the condition that made you fall (i.e. water on the floor, ice cream on the floor, etc. . .), then speak to the witness and get the contact information for the witness. While the store may complete an incident report, the store may not provide you with the incident report or the name of the witness in the future. Get your own information (if possible) rather than relying on the store to provide it to you.

3. Look for what caused your fall. Was there a warning sign by the danger? Photograph the area where you fell, point it out to someone nearby, and pay attention to the location of the area, size of the spill or dangerous condition, time of the fall, and other details.

4. Seek medical treatment if you have any pain.

Continue reading "I Slipped and Fell at a Store in Florida: What Should I Do? What Are My Legal Rights?" »

closing of a Jacksonville Nursing Home, Glenwood Nursing Center. In accordance with Florida Statute 440.022(O) residents living in a nursing home have a right to be protected from personal injuries resulting from mental or physical abuse. Due to an investigation by the Department of Children and Families, it came to light that such protections were not in place at Jacksonville’s Glenwood Nursing Center and on July 15, 2010, residents and their families discovered the State of Florida will be revoking the facility’s license due to such violations.
The abuse reported by Department of Children and families was not the stereotypical abuse we hear of regarding bed sores and lack of treatment, but was due to patients being injured due to the actions of other patients and injuries resulting from falls. A facility’s duty to protect goes beyond providing care directly to the patients, but also protecting patients from others that have violent tendencies. Over the years there have been reports of patients using their wheelchairs to injure others and the facility has failed to properly supervise and separate the offenders from the other patients. Patient on patient fighting should not be tolerated and the facility’s failure to stop such abuses shows negligence in training its employees to property supervise and protect its residents.

Other signs of abuse were those due to lack of supervision of patients leading to injuries from patients falling. While an occasional fall will occur, the number of falls in the last 5 years at Glenwood Nursing Center caused alarm in the investigation. One patient reported having multiple falls and related injuries since entering the facility. These types of reports have also led the state’s decision in the license revocation of Glenwood Nursing Center.

Continue reading "Nursing Home Abuse Closes Jacksonville, Florida Glenwood Nursing Center" »

Jacksonville resident Michele Haddad, who became a quadriplegic as the result of a 2007 motorcycle accident, has been told by a U.S. District Judge that she can remain in her home and still receive Medicaid services.

According to an article in the Florida Times-Union, Haddad has been on a waiting list for the services via Florida’s Traumatic Brain Injury/Spinal Cord Injury Medicaid waiver program after losing her caregiver, whose services had enabled Haddad to remain in her home.

She wished to remain in her home to receive state services, but had been told by state officials that she had to move to a nursing home for 60 days in order to be eligible. Her attorney, with assistance from the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, argued that the state’s position violates the Americans With Disabilities Act to live independently.

U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard granted Haddad a preliminary injunction requiring the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration and the Florida Department of Health to reassess her eligibility for services. The judge also told the agencies they could not deny services without a court order, and that they must reassess Haddad’s status every 40 days and provide regular notices to the court regarding her position on the Traumatic Brain Injury/Spinal Cord Injury Medicaid waiver program waiting list.

According to Haddad’s Jacksonville personal injury lawyer, Judge Howard’s decision is important to a number of disabled Florida residents who want to stay in their homes.

By Lenorae Atter, Florida Attorney

In Florida, car insurance is required for all Florida drivers. Part of Florida's car insurance requirement is that you must have personal injury protection (PIP) coverage of $10,000.00. This form of insurance is considered "no fault" insurance. In Florida, PIP provides payment of doctor bills regardless of who was at fault for the accident.
Florida Statute 627.736 is the statute that controls the PIP coverage Florida drivers are required by Florida law to have. If you do not have this automobile insurance coverage in Florida, then you are in violation of the statute, you can receive a traffic citation / ticket, and your Florida driver's license can be suspended.

Florida no fault insurance PIP insurance coverage is a benefit to you as a driver. If you are in a Florida automobile accident and you are at fault, then you still are entitled $10,000.00 in medical coverage. Also, if you are injured and the accident is the fault of the other, but they are not insured, then you still have coverage for your medical bills. Another plus is that you do not have to wait for fault to be determined before seeking medical treatment.

Though you are covered up to $10,000, you may have a deductible of $1,000 or more. If you do, then you have to actually reach $1,250.00 in medical bills before your PIP coverage will begin paying the bills. The reason for this difference is that PIP only pays 80% of the bill and you are responsible for 20% and when you have a deductible you have to reach the amount that PIP covers. If your deductible is $1,000 then 80% of $1,250 is $1,000.

If you are injured in an accident and seek treatment but your bills are not paid, then you need to contact your insurance company or seek the advice of a Florida personal injury attorney to assist you.

By Lenorae Atter, Attorney

Car insurance is required in Florida, but what if your car is inoperable?

In Florida, car insurance is a requirement. Specifically no-fault insurance, which covers your medical bills and is also known as Personal Injury Protection or PIP, is a requirement to drive a car. If you are in an accident and you own a car, regardless of who's car you are driving, your PIP coverage will be used for your medical bills. If you do not have PIP coverage and you own a car in Florida, then you will not be able to get any other car insurance, including the at-fault driver's insurance, to provide for your medical bills. However, if you own a car and it does NOT work, meaning that the car does not run (not due to a flat tire), then you may be able to attach to the PIP coverage of the vehicle you were driving or to the coverage of the other vehicle involved in the accident.

In order to show the insurance company that you did not have to maintain PIP coverage you will need to sign an affidavit, a sworn to statement, that you did not have a vehicle that was working at the time of the accident. It is also a good idea to have an affidavit signed by a licensed mechanic and another witness. This helps you to prove your case of not needing PIP or no-fault coverage at the time of the accident.

If you later have a claim for injuries that resulted from your accident, the at-fault insurance company will not be lenient with a settlement offer if you did not have PIP coverage and had a working vehicle. If you are in this situation, it is best to consult with an attorney.