Catastrophic injuries can be the result of a sport, a vehicle accident or a major traumatic event. These injuries are life changing and can cause the quality of life to decrease immediately or as a lasting result of the injury. While these injuries can be expensive, there are ways to ease the financial stress of the piling medical bills.

Plan Ahead

If you have access to health insurance or a health savings plan, it’s important to take advantage of that. Even if you can only afford a high deductible plan and you don’t think it’s worth the monthly cost, it is definitely worth it if you are ever in an accident. Even paying a $5,000 deductible is a lot more affordable than paying hundreds of thousands in medical expenses. Building a good nest egg will also help to cover expenses if you are kept out of your job for an extended period of time.

Seek All Medical Care

After the initial visit with a doctor after a catastrophic injury has occurred, it is important to attend all follow up appointments as suggested by your physician. These medical appointments assure that there is no underlying issues with the injury and that it is healing properly. Oftentimes, people try to avoid any non-necessary appointments in order to save money. This can be detrimental because if the injury gets infected or doesn’t heal properly, you may have even higher medical bills for retreatment.

Don’t Stress

Often, a catastrophic injury can cause a lot of financial and physical burdens. It is important to not create more stress for yourself by worrying about these burdens and focus on healing the injury and yourself. By forgetting the burdens that are in place due to the injury, you can reduce the amount of stress in your life. Ask a family member or friend to help you go through your medical bills and finances so that you aren’t overwhelmed. It may also be a good idea to seek advice from a financial planner. Some companies can also help you arrange a low interest payment plan with the hospital so ease your financial stress.

Get the Help You Need

Agencies, such as disability ones, are in place for people that are hurt or sick and need help with various aspects of life. Visiting one of these agencies and talking to a representative can help you get financial, medical and emotional help. Also, if you were injured and it wasn’t your fault, you may be entitled to a settlement. Get in touch with an injury lawyer, like those at Bronson Jones & Co, and they’ll be able to help you figure out what money you might be entitled too. It’s important to seek this help because you could receive compensation to cover everything from your medical bills to lost work salary.

Hire an Attorney

Whether your injury was due to a negligent accident or something that could have been prevented, it is important to hire an attorney that can represent you when you are injured and not able to represent yourself. An attorney can help you press charges if need be and can help you approach disability agencies.

Rest

A catastrophic injury generally prevents someone from working ever again. It is important to understand that you will not be able to work and that you need to take time to rest and allow your body to heal.

Find Financial Assistance

If your injury prevents you from performing your job, there is help. You can apply for disability insurance to help pay for your monthly expenses. Disability is generally based off how much money you made in the past and varies, but it can help pay for basic living expenses like rent and groceries.

Dealing with a catastrophic injury is a stressful and trying time in anyone’s life. It’s important to plan ahead financially and seek help when needed.