Planning for the future, funding your needs

Expenses

A spinal cord injury is a very expensive condition. The University of Alabama's National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center cites these figures:

• Average costs for the first year of medical care for a person with paraplegia are $209,000, and for a person with tetraplegia, $470,833.
• Annual costs in subsequent years can run more than $130,000 for a person with high tetraplegia, and more than $27,000 for a person with paraplegia
• Average cost for a van equipped to transport a person with tetraplegia is $45,000.
• Your home will require modifications that make it easy to get into and leave your house, and to use the kitchen, the bathroom, and other areas with your wheelchair. Costs of home modifications will vary, but the average cost to make a house fully wheelchair accessible is $175,000.

If your spinal cord injury compromises your ability to dress and toilet yourself, you may well need a personal care assistant. Costs will vary depending on where you live and how many days and hours per week you need an attendant.

Earning power

A spinal cord injury usually brings major changes in your earning power. While you're in rehab, your rehab team will help you think about work: whether you can expect to work, and if you can, whether you continue to work at the job you used to do, and what kinds of modifications you'll need in your work environment. If your former work is no longer possible, an occupational therapist and/or a vocational counselor will work with you to figure out what kind of work you're able to do.

Financial resources

If your injuries mean that either for the short term or the long term you'll be unable to work, you'll want to check on any disability insurance you may have, to see what kind of income it provides. You'll also want to look into eligibility for Social Security disability benefits and supplemental security income (SSI) and for Medicare, which provides medical coverage for people with disabilities, and any other insurance coverage you may have.

Should you consider legal action?

Many serious injuries are caused by the negligence or misconduct of another person, a corporation, or a governmental agency. Negligence is conduct which falls below the standard of care established by law for the protection of others against unreasonable risks of harm. Negligence and misconduct can occur in public settings, in which public employees such as law enforcement personnel fail to take sufficient care. It can also occur in any kind of business in which the business offers a service and owes a duty of care to its clients or customers. Misconduct is improper, or unlawful conduct motivated by premeditated or intentional purpose or by obstinate indifference to the consequences of one's acts.

If your spinal cord injury occurred as the result of negligence or misconduct, an attorney experienced in dealing with spinal cord injury cases may be able to achieve a settlement that will recover your medical and rehabilitation costs, both current and future. A settlement may also cover home modifications and future specialized care needs.

If you decide to pursue legal action, you should contact an attorney as soon as possible for review of your situation. There are deadlines called statutes of limitation, set by laws that regulate the filing of lawsuits which vary state by state. If you or a loved one have suffered a spinal cord injury and feel that negligence or misconduct was involved, you should not delay in contacting an attorney. If the statute of limitations expires, your right to pursue a claim may be forever barred.

The usual arrangement for hiring a lawyer for a spinal cord injury case is a contingent fee agreement. The attorney agrees to be paid a fee only if the client's case is ultimately successful, either by settlement out of court or by a judgment following a court proceeding. The attorney then receives a percentage of the final amount recovered. This fee arrangement is helpful for most people with a spinal cord injury because it does not require the person bringing the case to pay any money up front. Often the attorney may also be able to front part or all of the costs of litigation until the conclusion of the case.