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Old 03-19-2008, 07:41 PM   #1
adrenaline
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Am I missing something here?
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http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/ne...CD?OpenDocument



Quote:
WASHINGTON — The family of a Missouri woman must reimburse Wal-Mart for nearly a half-million dollars in medical expenses now that the U.S. Supreme Court has refused to review her case.

The court on Monday let stand a ruling by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis requiring Debbie Shank of Cape Girardeau County to pay nearly $470,000 to Wal-Mart.

The appeal was the last legal recourse for the family of the 52-year-old Shank, a mother of three who was critically injured in a car accident eight years ago. She suffered a brain injury that took her memory and left her with very little ability to move or communicate. She has lived in a nursing home since she was released from the hospital.

"It's been kind of hard on us," Nathan Shank, Debbie Shank's 17-year-old son, said Monday when told about the court's decision.

Nathan Shank said that with her case in limbo, his mother already had lost a private caregiver and might be moved out of her private room in the nursing home.

According to legal documents, Shank's medical bills — totaling $469,216 — were covered by a health insurance program at Wal-Mart, where Shank worked nights stocking shelves.

Her family later settled a lawsuit with the trucking company whose driver was involved in the accident. After attorneys' fees and expenses, $417,477 was put in a trust for Shank's care. That settlement money, plus $51,739 that Shank will have to pay out of pocket, must be paid to Wal-Mart.

As is common for employer-sponsored health plans, Shank's insurance required full repayment of medical expenses if she received money from a lawsuit.

Daphne Moore, a Wal-Mart spokeswoman, said the company sued "out of fairness to everyone who contributes" to the plan.

"This is a tragic situation," Moore said. "The reality is that the health plan is required to protect its assets so that it can pay future claims for other associates and their family members."

The Supreme Court gave no explanation for its decision.
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Old 03-19-2008, 08:47 PM   #2
fmb
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Re: Am I missing something here?
I'm surprised the family's attorney didn't warn them of this possibility; maybe he/she should have pushed harder to get a settlement slightly beyond what was required for reimbursement. This way, there could be SOME money available for her future care.

This has gotta suck for the family.
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Old 03-19-2008, 10:43 PM   #3
thecowboy
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Re: Am I missing something here?
She obviously shouldn't have taken a settlement that was below her medical expenses knowing that she was required to reimburse. Sounds like her lawyers thought they had a better case of prevailing against the terms of the insurance than they did against the trucking company and took a gamble. They were wrong.
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Old 03-20-2008, 07:28 AM   #4
adrenaline
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Re: Am I missing something here?
Think she could go after her lawyer? as im sure she had one and therefore he should have been aware of such rules per her insurance..
Quote:
She suffered a brain injury that took her memory and left her with very little ability to move or communicate.



I understand why wal-mart would sue.. but i dont really understand why they did. gimmie a break. the money was for future health care.
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Old 03-20-2008, 10:45 AM   #5
thecowboy
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Re: Am I missing something here?
Quote:
Originally Posted by adrenaline
Think she could go after her lawyer? as im sure she had one and therefore he should have been aware of such rules per her insurance..


I understand why wal-mart would sue.. but i dont really understand why they did. gimmie a break. the money was for future health care.


Of course wal-mart sued. What happens next time this happens? They let that person go too?

As far as suing the lawyer, you have to show that you would have prevailed but for the lawyers malpractice. Basically, the lady will have to prove her case against the trucking company. If she can, then the lawyer will be responsible for damages just like the trucking company would have been. I'm guessing it's a tough case since the lawyers were so willing to settle. My guess is that the accident was partly her fault, or the circumstances are such that it would be very difficult to prove negligence for whatever reason.

Also, the lawyers in the malpractice case likely wouldn't take this case on a contingency due to the risk. She would have to pay hourly.
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Old 03-20-2008, 10:51 AM   #6
licupssy
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Re: Am I missing something here?
The greatest part of the story is that it was written to sell papers. Another article I read which gives more of the facts is located here: http://www.iwasyouragetwice.com/node/2030

It's still definitely not a great situation to be in.

The husband signed papers for the insurance company promissing repayment from any money received in a law suit. A couple quotes from the article below.

Quote:
The lawsuit was settled for $900,000; after attorneys' fees and other costs, Shank's share was less than half -- just $417,477. The court set
up an irrevocable trust for the money so it could only be used to pay for her long term care, and the money was sent directly there. Her husband
received just over $119,000, presumably for his loss of consortium.



Quote:
Jim Shank had anticipated and feared just such an outcome. He received a letter two weeks after the accident that, he recalls, said the insurance would not cover his wife's care unless he signed over their right to lawsuit proceeds. Not surprisingly, he signed it so his wife could get the care she desperately needed to survive.

Lawyers familiar with this type of suit says it's not really uncommon. In fact, according to the insurer's lawsuit, the terms are explicit in
Wal-Mart's health plan, which is to be reimbursed first from lawsuit proceeds up to 100 percent of the medical costs.



PS: Knowing I'm older them dirt, you'll probably note the connection to the website.
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Old 03-20-2008, 11:10 AM   #7
kulotsalot
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Re: Am I missing something here?
Universal health care
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Old 03-20-2008, 01:13 PM   #8
YaMon
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Re: Am I missing something here?
Quote:
Originally Posted by kulotsalot
Universal health care


Hillary's health care model already failed in Tennessee and drove the state into near bankruptcy:

Quote:
Tennessee, where that state's abysmal TennCare program has forced dozens of hospitals out of business, pushed thousands of doctors and other health care professionals out of the state, destroyed any semblance of competitive health insurance market, and nearly drove the state government into bankruptcy. Tennessee's disastrous experiment with universal health care coverage began in 1994 in the wake of Hillary Clinton's failed national single-payer plan. The Clinton Administration was anxious to see the program implemented on a smaller scale, so Vice President Al Gore was tasked to enlist then-Tennessee Democrat Gov. Ned McWherter to agree to the plan with the assurance that such a program would save the state money in the long-run and that the federal government would kick in the majority of the cost of running the program.
By the year 2000, however, McWherter was long gone and TennCare was now the problem of Republican, Gov. Don Sundquist. Just days after Sundquist's successful 1999 reelection campaign came to a close, during which he had repeatedly vowed never to consider instituting a state income tax, his fiscal advisors broke the sad news that the state was going broke as a result of TennCare. The program had become the line item that had consumed the state budget - ballooning more than 200 percent in less than six years.


But yeah! Go Universal Health Care!
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Old 03-20-2008, 10:04 PM   #9
kulotsalot
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Re: Am I missing something here?
Quote:
Originally Posted by YaMon
Hillary's health care model already failed in Tennessee and drove the state into near bankruptcy:



But yeah! Go Universal Health Care!


Maybe she's running it wrong.

If you need a new hip, you go to the US and git 'er done ASAP.

If you have a terminal illness or you're an invalid for life, you go to Canada and we will take care of you until you croak.
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Old 03-21-2008, 08:33 AM   #10
YaMon
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Re: Am I missing something here?
Quote:
Originally Posted by kulotsalot
you go to Canada and we will take care of you until you croak.


Does that "care" fall under MY definition of "care"?
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Old 03-21-2008, 08:47 AM   #11
CD
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Re: Am I missing something here?
Does this care have Happy Ending?
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Old 03-21-2008, 09:19 AM   #12
jabber
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Re: Am I missing something here?
cant see where it would be any worse than here,I've worked in a "rehab" facility and patients' treatment there made me quit.
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Old 03-21-2008, 09:41 AM   #13
CWB
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Re: Am I missing something here?
Quote:
Originally Posted by jabber
cant see where it would be any worse than here,I've worked in a "rehab" facility and patients' treatment there made me quit.


heh ... the "spin dry" .
once you get out it's a case of SOBER (son of'a bitch everthing's real) .
yeah buddy , welcome to the real world ... this is how it works and don't work .
ya gotta want to want to want .

i've seen/worked with a fair amount of those "graduates" .
i certainly won't hang it all on the facility or individual , it's more oft than not a mix , pretty much a case by case deal .
just my personal opinion based upon experience .
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