If you are injured in an accident, the law may hold someone else responsible for your injuries and the cost to treat them.

However, the law also allows hospitals to put a “lien” on the outcome of your case against the person that injured you.

·         This lien gives the hospital a legal right to take the money you recovered in court and use it to pay for the cost of your treatment.

Some hospitals will get a lien without even submitting a claim to your health insurance provider. These liens may lead to debt collection or bad credit reporting before your case has been decided.

We support changes to the current law to protect consumers:

·         Once a patient gives the hospital his or her health insurance information, the hospital should not be able to get a lien without first submitting a claim to the patient’s health insurance provider.

·         Hospitals should also be prohibited from starting debt collection or credit reporting action against injured persons until a judgment, verdict or settlement for damages has been determined.