The True Long-Term Cost of Spinal Cord Injury in Oklahoma
When a spinal cord injury claim is settled or tried to verdict it must account for not just current losses but the full projected lifetime cost of the injury. Warhawk Legal’s Joe Carson works with life care planners and economic experts to ensure every Oklahoma spinal cord injury claim reflects what the injury truly costs over a lifetime.
Immediate Costs — The First Year
Emergency medical care including ambulance, emergency surgery, and intensive care. Acute rehabilitation at a specialized spinal cord injury rehabilitation center. Adaptive equipment including wheelchair, specialized mattress, and mobility aids. Home modifications including ramp construction, widened doorways, and accessible bathroom installation. Initial vehicle modification for hand controls if the injury affects lower extremities.
Ongoing Annual Costs
Routine medical care and monitoring by a physiatrist and specialist team. Physical therapy to maintain function and prevent secondary complications. Occupational therapy and assistive technology maintenance. Personal care assistance — attendant care costs that can run $30,000 to $80,000 or more per year depending on injury level. Annual replacement of adaptive equipment and wheelchair components. Medication costs for spasticity, pain, and secondary conditions.
Lifetime Projected Costs
For a young person with a cervical spinal cord injury the present value of lifetime care costs calculated by life care planners routinely exceeds $2 million to $5 million or more. These projected future costs are the largest single component of a serious spinal cord injury claim and they must be established through expert testimony to be recoverable. For resources on spinal cord injury life care planning visit the National Spinal Cord Injury Association at spinalcord.org.
How Warhawk Legal Builds Full Value Into Oklahoma Spinal Cord Injury Claims
Joe Carson works with certified life care planners who prepare comprehensive reports documenting every projected future medical need and its present value. We work with vocational economists to calculate lost earning capacity. We retain medical experts to testify about long-term prognosis. This comprehensive expert approach is what produces settlements and verdicts that truly reflect the lifetime impact of a spinal cord injury.
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