A medical lien is most often issued in case of personal injury, as a way for health care providers and some insurers to cover payment—or partial payment—for treatment after a settlement has been awarded in the case. The medical lien entitles the provider or insurance company to a share of the settlement to recoup their own costs. As is the case with retrieving medical records and billing records, some lien records are easier to retrieve than others, but The Records Company’s seasoned professionals have the expertise to retrieve medical liens from public and private sources, quickly and efficiently.
Hospital Liens
Hospitals and doctors commonly issue liens in cases in which a patient has not demonstrated an ability to pay for treatment, most often in cases of accidents. If a patient is uninsured, treatment providers may issue a lien against the patient’s assets to collect payment for their services. If the patient is insured, the lien is usually resolved when the patient’s insurance company pays the bill. Some liens associated with accidents or personal injuries allow the hospital to collect a share of settlement proceeds from a legal claim or from worker’s compensation in cases of work-related injury. Hospital liens are usually filed in the county where the hospital is located.
Private Insurance Liens
Because settlement amounts awarded in accident and injury cases are meant to cover medical expenses, many states allow private insurance policies to include a subrogation clause. These clauses allow an insurance company to claim a portion of a personal injury or accident settlement to recover payments the company has made for treatment. In theory, money from the settlement makes insurance payments redundant, allowing the company to recover payments already made for treatment. Records of these liens are obtained through the insurance company issuing the claim.
Medicare and Medicaid Liens
Medicare uses the term recovery claim instead of lien to describe documents issued to seek repayment for medical treatment. Recovery claims follow similar reasoning to subrogation clauses in private insurance: payment from another source renders Medicare payment unnecessary and subject to reimbursement. Medicare may temporarily cover payment for medical services under the condition that Medicare will recover these payments from a future settlement or from worker’s compensation, liability insurance, or other payment later arranged for treatment.
Medicaid liens are issued at the state level, and these liens allow a state’s Medicaid services to recover payments for emergency treatments related to accident or injury from settlement funds. States also recover Medicaid payments for nursing care, hospital visits, prescriptions and other services for patients over age 55, via liens on the patient’s estate or property if specific conditions are met.
How to Retrieve Liens
Insurance companies need records of liens to track payment. Attorneys need records of liens for cases in which the lien is subject to dispute. Whether the lien you need is issued by a hospital, private insurer, or government agency, The Records Company is ready to help you retrieve it. Our easy-to-use online portal allows you to complete the forms that allow us to make the calls and get liens and any other records you may need for your client or customer. We use the same portal to deliver your records quickly and securely. We make all the calls and submit all the paperwork. You get your time back.