Decatur Non-Emergency Medical Transport Accident Lawyer

With many motor vehicle accidents occurring in Georgia, an increasing number of incidents include non-emergency medical transports (NEMT) in Atlanta.

These transportation vans carry elderly, ill, or injured passengers to medical appointments. Unfortunately, an accident during medical transportation in Decatur leaves the frail passengers vulnerable to severe injuries. 

If you or a loved one has been injured in a Decatur Non-Emergency Medical Transport accident, you may recover financial compensation from the responsible party to cover medical bills and other losses. Depending on the type of accident, you can recover compensation through a personal injury lawsuit or an insurance claim.

To discuss your legal options, contact the experienced non-emergency medical transportation accident lawyer at Marks Law Group. Aaron Marks has made a name for himself representing clients and specializing in NEMT accident cases. He has successfully represented NEMT accident victims and their families, recover significant settlements from companies that provide medical transportation in Georgia.

While fighting for the best possible compensation for our clients and their families, we do so while treating our clients with compassion and respect. To schedule a free initial consultation, call us today at (678) 251-9309, or chat with us online to learn how we can help.

What is a Non-Emergency Medical Transportation?

Healthcare organizations and private entities offer ride services to elderly and disabled people to help them get to and from medical appointments and therapy sessions. Patients must schedule these services before their appointments and outings.

Just like medical taxis, these ride services take patients between assisted living facilities, nursing homes, hospitals, and doctor offices. Unlike ambulances, these medical transportation services are for people who need help, not those suffering from an emergency.

Non-emergency medical transportation services include:

• Ambulance transportation,
• Stretcher medical transportation,
• Wheelchair transportation,
• Flight escorts, and
• Courier services,

NEMT companies must insure their vehicles sufficiently to cover passengers if an accident happens. Also, they must buy workers’ compensation to protect their employees if they sustain injuries while on duty. 

Often, Medicaid and private insurance companies have their own medical transportation units. But also private NEMT companies transport patients who may not have Medicaid cover. These small private NEMT companies often hire unqualified drivers or use unreliable equipment.

Learn More About NEMT from Aaron Marks
Who Is Driving The Van? A Look at Non-Emergency Medical Transport Accidents

Highly trained drivers with medical training often transport patients to make sure they remain safe while on transit. However, the requirement for driving and transporting NEMT patients or passengers varies from state to state. Not all NEMT drivers have medical training; in fact, many don’t have medical training, which increases the odds of suffering harm while using NEMT services. 

What Are the Common Causes of NEMT Accidents?

Some common causes of NEMT accidents result in catastrophic injuries or even death of NEMT passengers or patients. These include:

• Dropping passengers or patients while loading or unloading them. Loading and unloading patients, especially those with certain physical disabilities or limitations, can be challenging, and NEMT employees who perform such tasks should be trained properly to perform these tasks. Unfortunately, most NEMT companies try to maximize profits by maximizing their payroll, and thus, many NEMT employees are insufficiently trained. This can cause patients or passengers to be dropped from stretchers, gurneys, or wheelchairs. Such accidents can cause catastrophic injuries, such as broken bones, head injuries, traumatic brain injuries, paralysis, or even death. 
• Collisions with other motor vehicles or objects. Collisions between NEMT vehicles and passenger cars, commercial trucks, motorcycles, and other vehicles on the roads is another common cause of NEMT accidents. While these collisions are accidents; they’re often caused by someone’s negligence. In such cases, the facts of the crash need to be investigated thoroughly to determine if the accident was caused by the negligence of a NEMT employee, driver of another vehicle, or a combination of both. Since the NEMT patient or passenger did nothing to cause the crash, it’s crucial to hold responsible parties liable for their reckless actions.
• Not securing or improperly securing a patient to their seat. NEMT companies transport persons who need specialized care from one place to another. These companies must ensure their employees properly restrain or secure patients or passengers, but that isn’t always the case. An improperly secured or restrained passenger can become a human projectile during a crash or even unsafe or careless driving. Sadly, focusing on making profits over the safety of patients or passengers can result in poorly trained NEMT employees or carelessness in securing passengers or patients.
• Not securing the wheelchair or improperly securing a wheelchair-bound patient. The leading cause of NEMT accidents is wheelchair-bound patients being improperly secured during transportation. As with patients or passengers who are improperly secured on their seats; NEMT passengers or patients who need wheelchairs for mobility are at a greater risk of sustaining injuries or even death if their wheelchair is improperly secured during transport. They may suffer severe injuries commonly known as “second impact” injuries. A first impact is an impact between a NEMT vehicle and another vehicle or object, and this may not result in injury. However, when a patient or a passenger in a poorly or improperly secured wheelchair is knocked out of their chair, or driven into another object in the NEMT van, they suffer severe injuries called second impact injuries.
• Not safely transferring patients to and from stretchers, wheelchairs, or gurneys. A medical transportation staff must be skilled in transferring elderly, physically limited, or disabled patients safely to and from a stretcher, gurney, or wheelchair. However, most NEMT workers lack the proper training or skills to perform such tasks. Further, even the best trained NEMT employees can have a lapse of judgment or they can make mistakes that can cause catastrophic ramifications. NEMT companies are responsible for the actions of their employees, and when a NEMT employee’s actions cause an injury, the company should be held accountable. 
• Improper use of chair lifts. Chair lifts are used to load and unload NEMT passengers or patients who are transported in wheelchairs. Improperly operated chair lifts or malfunctioning chair lifts are other sources of NEMT injuries where the NEMT patients or passengers should be compensated for their injuries.
• Leaving patients in hazardous or dangerous conditions. As hard as it may seem, NEMT passengers or patients also sustain injuries because of being left unattended by NEMT employees. Elderly or physically disabled patients or passengers who can’t exit the NEMT van on their own can suffer injuries or death if they’re left unattended in a hot vehicle. Also, NEMT passengers are put in unsafe conditions if they’re neglected in an unsafe area. NEMT companies are responsible for safely transporting patients or passengers. Also, NEMT companies are required to deliver passengers safely to their destination, whether it’s a medical appointment or a return trip to the passenger or patient’s home. 

If you or a loved one sustained injuries because of negligent NEMT employees, you should contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. Marks Law Group is here to help you recover all damages allowed by law. Contact us today at (678) 251-9309, or chat with us online for a free no-cost initial consultation. 

How Can I Prove Negligence in NEMT Lawsuits?

Though NEMT patients or passengers are sometimes injured intentionally, most injuries from NEMT are because of the company’s negligence. From the worker who assembled a chairlift to the driver of the NEMT van, many people may act negligently. To prove that another party’s negligence caused you or your loved one’s injuries, you must prove the following elements:

Duty of Care

NEMT companies in Georgia owe their passengers a duty of care to transport them safely and deliver them safely to their destination. 

This duty of care means NEMT companies in Georgia must:

• Obey all traffic laws,
• Train their employees on how to drive safely and care for passengers,
• Load and unload patients carefully, and 
• Ensure all passengers and patients are secured properly before driving.

While obeying traffic laws is essential, a NEMT worker in Georgia must also act responsibly when caring for vulnerable patients and passengers.

Breach of Duty

When the NEMT company doesn’t act responsibly, they breach their duty of care. For example, a NEMT driver who breaks traffic laws by speeding or texting while driving is breaching the duty of care. A NEMT worker who drops a patient or can’t secure a patient properly is also at-fault. If, for instance, the NEMT driver abandoned a patient in an unsafe area, including outside a locked building in freezing weather, this is a breach of duty of care.

Breach of Duty Caused Harm

You must prove that the NEMT company’s actions caused you or your loved one harm. For instance, if you broke your leg when a NEMT worker dropped you, or you suffered frostbite when the NEMT driver left you in the cold, the NEMT worker and the driver are at fault.

Harm Is Worth Damages

The harm you suffered in a NEMT accident must be severe enough to result in damages or a compensation award by the court. Thus, if you only suffered a minor bruise or scrape, that injury isn’t worth a lawsuit. However, if you suffered severe head injuries or traumatic brain injuries because of a NEMT worker’s negligence, you may recover substantial compensation after filing a personal injury lawsuit.

Often, proving negligence in NEMT accident claims is complicated, so you should consult an experienced Decatur non-emergency medical transportation accident attorney as soon as possible. An attorney can review your case and determine the damages you’re entitled and he or she can fight fiercely to help you recover the compensation you deserve.

What are the Complexities of NEMT Negligence Claims in Georgia?

When you or your loved one sustains injuries in a NEMT accident, you need an experienced non-emergency medical transportation accident lawyer on your NEMT negligence claim.

Although it may seem like an accident attorney can handle your case, NEMT cases involve far more than accident laws.

These complex claims need an experienced attorney who understands these Georgia laws:

• Traffic laws;
• Personal injury laws;
• Medical malpractice laws;
• State regulations;
• Broker relationships, and 
• Nursing home policies.

Because of the complex laws that might apply to your NEMT claim, you must hire an attorney with extensive expertise and knowledge in litigating medical transportation claims.

Your non-emergency medical transportation accident lawyer must understand relevant policies and what laws best apply to your lawsuit.

Contact Our Experienced Decatur Non-Emergency Medical Transportation Accident Lawyers Today for Legal Advice!

At Marks Law Group, our non-emergency medical transportation accident attorneys have decades of experience representing Atlanta NEMT accident victims. With NEMT accidents increasing every year in Georgia, we talk with many injured NEMT passengers. 

Our legal representation of injured NEMT patients gives us the insight to litigate these cases effectively. We know you and your family have been through a lot already, so we will try to make the legal process as easy as possible. This means our legal team will take care of all the investigating, negotiating, and pursuing the compensation you deserve to cover your medical bills and other financial losses. Contact us today at (678) 251-9309, or chat with us online for a free initial consultation.