$20 Billion. What is this enormous number? Well, as The Michigan Law Firm, PLLC has discussed in previous blog posts and though our social media outlets such as twitter, facebook, and Google+, Michigan has No-fault auto insurance which allows for payment of catastrophic claims through the Michgian Catastrophic Claims Association (MCCA), which in certain cases pays for catastrophic Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits such as, the cost of medical expenses for surgeries, nursing care, and other medical attention needed for major injuries for policyholders who have been involved in auto accidents and who file a claim with their insurance company.
L. Brooks Patterson, County Executive of Oakland County recently wrote in to tell people why this $20 billion dollars is important in the wake of Senate Bill 248. This bill, which does not even guarantee that No-fault insurance premiums will be decreased, significantly limits some of the PIP benefits that victims of auto accidents may receive and make it difficult for the medical providers of those victims to be fairly compensated for their serves and to provide the highest level of patient care. According to Patterson, the sneak attack by auto insurance companies is because of their greed to pocket the $20 billion dollars.
It’s already bad enough that auto insurance companies are making you pay their $186 dollar fee to MCCA each year by passing on this cost to consumers in their insurance premiums, but it’s worse to slyly introduce a bill at 4:59 PM, craftily attempting drastically alter No-Fault before anyone even knew it was on the agenda. If the insurance companies succeed in passing the ill-conceived No-fault reforms, medical providers say that quality of care will be significantly diminished for people in Michigan who have been involved in motor vehicle accidents.
For example, in 2014, the MCCA “paid out $1 billion, mostly for brain and spinal cord injuries, multiple fractures, and back and neck injuries.” This is why doctors, nurses, therapists, hospitals and the Coalition Protecting Auto No-Fault are doing everything they can to educate Michigan citizens and conduct meaningful conversations with our leaders in the Michigan House of Representatives
Sources: MCCA & Daily Tribune