If you were injured in an auto accident in Michigan, you may be entitled to compensation through the state’s no fault insurance system. This includes Personal Injury Protection coverage, which pays for all reasonable medical expenses without a maximum limit. These costs can include hospital stays, medication, rehabilitation, and other essential health services needed for recovery. For those requiring long-term help, legal services from The Clark Law Office can guide you through the claims process and ensure you receive the benefits you deserve, including compensation for attendant care after a serious car accident.

Attendant care services are different from short-term home nursing. While home nurses focus on stabilizing a patient’s condition, attendant care is often a lifelong necessity for those with severe injuries. It covers assistance with daily living tasks such as eating, bathing, dressing, and mobility. Understanding the difference between these types of care is critical when filing your claim and ensuring you are fully compensated for the level of support you need.

The Importance of Activities of Daily Living to Accident Victims

People who are well and healthy do these activities of daily living independently and efficiently. However, for people who had severe injuries, doing these tasks is a struggle to go through. Imagine a victim with spinal cord injury trying to go to a bathroom alone. Or perhaps a victim who got both of his hands amputated trying to feed himself. These are not pleasant thoughts to envision.

Luckily, there are attendant care services provided by caregivers. These caregivers can be a family member or hired to attend to the person with a disability. With a caregiver present, anyone who had severe injuries can do these primary activities again. The spinal cord injury victim can safely go to the bathroom without slipping, and the amputee can enjoy his meal again.  To be more specific, here are basic and instrumental activities of daily living that accident victims have difficulty in:

  • Bathing and showering
  • Using the toilet
  • Dressing
  • Eating and feeding
  • Moving from one place to another, with or without assistance and devices
  • Taking care of personal devices, such as orthotics, prosthetics, and others
  • Grooming
  • Taking and scheduling medications
  • Exercising

In these activities, the accident victims need assistance and help from the caregiver in charge. But the attendant caregiver has more additional duties to bear to help the patient. Here are some of them:

  • Assisting the patient in transferring, from beds to chairs and other surfaces
  • Attending to the patients’ wounds
  • Monitoring the patients’ vital signs
  • Supervising the patient throughout the day
  • Complying with the physical therapist and other rehabilitation professionals

Attendant Care Services and the Law

Providing attendant care services, given all these tasks, is not easy for both the caregiver and the victim. One way or another, everyone needs all the help they can get to ease their burden. Of all these help, legal assistance could help reduce your financial troubles.  According to the Michigan No-Fault law, the coverage for compensation includes all reasonable and necessary products, services and accommodations. Given all these, the injured person’s care, recovery, or rehabilitation will be achieved. Attendant care fits these criteria and, therefore, should be included as compensation.  But before a patient can enjoy covered attendant care, they should first get certification from a physician. This physician-issued certificate should state the following:

  • The accident victim has been severely injured because of the accident
  • The injury has disabled the victim to do the basic activities of daily living
  • Attendant care services are necessary for the person to achieve these activities of daily living

The Cost for Attendant Care Services

How much are the attendant care services? In Michigan, there is a debate on how much attendant care services should be to be considered “reasonable.” However, the standard hourly rate for these services is roughly $20 to $30 for each attendant caregiver.  Following the No-Fault insurance law, the expenses for attendant care services must be paid by the victim’s no-fault insurer. In case the victim has no insurance policy, the obligation to pay for the benefits are the following:

  • The no-fault insurance policy of the injured victim’s spouse
  • The no-fault insurance policy of an immediate relative of the injured victim
  • The no-fault insurance policy of the owner/registrant of the car involved in the crash
  • The no-fault insurance company of the driver of the vehicle involved in the accident
  • The Michigan Assigned Claims Facility

Contact Us To Help You Enjoy The Full Benefits of Attendant Care Services

Activities of daily living are a right for everyone to do freely. If you were injured in Michigan, we could help you achieve this right. Our experienced car accident attorneys will guide you throughout your case. Contact us at (517) 347-6900 today for a free consultation regarding attendant care services and your other first party benefits.  We charge no fees unless you win!

Learn how in-home care benefits relate to other PIP services in our car accident resource center.

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