How an MRI can increase the settlement of a personal injury claim- Kelly Law Team

Personal injury lawyer John Kelly describes how an MRI can increase the settlement value of a personal injury claim.

If you have additional questions for John, please feel free to post them in the comments section below the video.

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Transcript:

- Hi, this is John Kelly. I wanted to talk to you today about how an MRI can affect your settlement in a personal injury claim and whether it's worth getting an MRI if your doctor recommends one. Generally, to this question, the answer is going to be yes, it is highly recommended. If your doctor is telling you that it's possible that you have an injury that could be something that would benefit from seeing more detailed images from an MRI, you want to go ahead and get that done right away on your case. Now, an MRI is different a little bit from x-rays. X-rays are good for diagnosing things like fractures, dislocations and they're a little bit lower cost. The benefit of an MRI is that you actually can see some of the soft tissues and with personal injury claims, that's actually very relevant. Oftentimes with injuries that involve things like auto accidents, you have bulging discs in the back. You could have other injuries that don't always show a broken bone but may show kind of soft tissue injuries and that kind of thing, which an MRI can be useful for. I'm going to talk about how MRIs help your case and how they can add value. I have about five things that they can help with your case and then about five things that they can add value. What I mean by help is that they can kind of push your claim along and make sure that you're getting the right things that you need so that you can later add the value. The first thing is a MRI is going to be hard proof of your injury. What I mean by that is when we're trying to explain an injury to an insurance adjuster or another attorney, if we have hard proof of that, meaning actual injury images, we are in much better position to actually make that claim for you. If we have just a doctor saying it seems like there may be some bulging disc and it's just a narrative that they're writing down in their reports, no images attached, that isn't necessarily hard proof to these adjusters. They like to see it for themselves. And that kind of dovetails into the second thing. Images tell a better story than words. You actually have an image of something. If I can send a photograph of an injury, if someone breaks their nose in an accident and I can show a picture of them with bandages on their face to an adjuster, that's always helpful. The same applies with things inside your body that are going wrong that have injuries. If we can show a bulging disc, a closeup of the actual disc and the tissue bulging out, that's much more compelling to adjusters. It tells a lot more than just trying to have a diagnostic code that they're reading. Number three, it's a medically accepted diagnosis, meaning these doctors, this isn't pseudo science or anything like that, we have actual MDs that are using the science of MRI. It's generally accepted in the legal community and medical community so it's something that you don't have to worry about, that adjusters are going to know that they have to add value to your claim based on it. The fourth thing that I have is that bills and records will allow further treatment and the possibility of even things like surgery. So if you get these records early and you can see what your injuries are, it's very apparent what needs to happen then down the line so that doctors, you can send these images to different orthopedic doctors, to possible surgeons, and they can look at the 3D images and say, "Look, this what I think you need to do to treat moving forward." Getting the treatment that you need to get better is part of adding value to your claim because if you just sit on something, you don't have the images, you're just sitting in pain, you're not getting treatment, you're not adding value to your claim. You want to make sure that you're getting the right diagnosis, which would be the MRI, that would then later justify for their treatment. Then finally, five, you're not guessing as to what happened and that can, believe it or not, happen with a lot of claims. People go to a doctor, they have some scans done, maybe not in the right areas of their body or they're just told that it looks like it's a whiplash situation, that they can do some physical therapy.

[johnm]

This is a great point.  
When I was injured on the job I wasn’t taken seriously until I had an X-Ray
and then an MRI done on my back showing the injury to my disc and spine.

[lillyd]

I can't THANK YOU ENOUGH. Your a I wish you where here Boston area!!!

[personalinjuryshow]

Valuable information and awesome advice.

[anusi]

I was in an accident where my entire right side was impacted when the car T-boned in to us. The other car was totaled and the other driver accepted he was at fault. I had to go through a knee surgery and physiotherapy for my knee and right side of the neck and shoulder. After two years of physical therapy and surgery, my physiotherapist say that it’s a chronic pain and have put me though pain management program. I am yet to settle my claim, have until March 15th. What would be your advise? I am based out of california.

[laurazimmerman]

@Kelly Law Team THANK YOU wow you are a true servant in my book, Do you know any great Workers Comp lawyers located in Indpls Indiana THANKS 😊

[williemcqueen]

Are you in Dallas fort Worth tx
Good information excellent info

[arielejel]

Thanks for the videos. Its very informative. So i was involved in a slip and fall. Sprained Wrist and Lumbar strain. MRI found nothing but I feel back pain and numbness on my calf. The doctor told me to do PT. PT seems to flare up my back. How is this calculated and I m worried it might come back in the future if I settle now. What do you think I should do? Have you ever had a case this? Thanks in Advance!

[Achala]

That is one of the problems I have, nothing on MRI except bulging disc, but they all say someone my age often has asymptomatic bulging discs, nothing on xray, nothing on CT, but every morning since Oct, I am woke early and cant stay in bed, its nearly march now... if I have a facet ligament injury can it be diagnosed? So frustrating not having anything to show for the pain I have...

[sherrodhenderson]

How long does it take a lawyer to write a demand letter?

[laragreene]

OF COURSE HAVING PROOF IS BETTER THAN HAVING NONE! I had a MRI in the ER...the crooked Dr said I had no i had a CT scan and it showed the injury! I would recommend a CT scan....to my understanding a CT scan is better. i would also reccomend getting a great Doctor. Seems workmans comp is also paying some Doctors to lie!

[interstateeddietv]

It's a long drawn out process but I did have an MRI done and I'm glad I did. My lawyer have me going to chiropractors, pain management, etc.

[Profit..]

I have a question, I was a passenger in a car driving on the highway at 55mph, a car slams into us at 85 mph and I went to hospital driven by friend immediately after. I was diagnosed with whiplash and a concussion. My ER visit was $7000 . I don't have representation and didn't get a lawyer and it's been 5 months but still having headaches and memory loss. Considering all of this would I be reasonable to receive $14000 for medical bills and my pain and suffering? $7000 ultimately to me. It was a pretty a traumatic accident, I didn't get further treatment because my medicaid doesn't do neurology. So I probably should have had a lawyer who does contingency plans with doctors. Thanks for your reply sorry I think I left this on other video, I thought it was erased.

[CJohnson]

My x ray in the hospital came to nothing. I have to go to a concentra clinic. Injuried yesterday when a back hit me in the head, from above, my neck hurts.

[lownfastazmarc]

Will CT scans help ?I had an employee of an HOA push me into my car putting my back out. I went to the emergency room afterwards and got a CT scan showing bulging and slipped disc in lowerback.

[MrBishypoo]

Been trying to get a MRI with the neurology i think that the defensive attorney is having something to do with they are keeping it from getting it done..I have several MRI done and the doctors are agree that i have neck and back shoulder injury's

[nekeshaeast]

First thing, if you go ahead and do the MRI by yourself you're gonna have to pay for it. Secondly you need to change your attorney because he's not fighting for you.

[marcusjohnson]

A deer total my car. I suffered whiplash, I sprained my neck, my upper back, and my lower back. I been going to rehab for a month now. I have state farm what am I looking at for pain and suffering. I did a mri, and xrays

[Freespirit]

I found it strange that the insurance company was prolonging my MRI referral requested by their own workers comp doctors they sent me to. Then when it was time for my deposition they tried to settle that same day🤔 I refused the settlement and waited for the MRI to be approved. Found out I had a 10.0 mm bulging disc pressing on the S1 nerve root with severe bilateral neural foraminal stenosis resulting in severe central stenosis and compression of the S1 nerve root all from bending forward over a table drawing lab specimens in a poor ergonomic lab setting for 6 years. Tried telling my employer about concerns but nothing was done and this was the result of their negligence. what happens after they gave confirmed these types of injuries and how long before returning to work? In my case I cannot return doing the same job as everything triggers my pain, too much sitting causes numbness down me leg, and to buch bending, or upand down motion triggers sharp pain across my lower back..

[georgevala]

i have a workers comp case is about to settle in 2 monts but i never had a MRI because the insurance denide my doctor told me i need an MRI but my attorney told me if the insurance denided the mri is because you dont need it do you think is that correct??? can i go for the MRI by my own???

[jakey]

I have had 2 MRIS waiting on the results from the second MRI.