Traumatic brain injuries can cause financial devastation
A traumatic brain injury is just that: traumatic. It can have lasting effects for victims as well as their loved ones in Texas and across the nation.
The numbers of cases of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) showing up in hospital emergency rooms in the United States increased by 53% from 2006 to 2014 – the latest time span for which statistics are available – according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In 2014, traumatic brain injuries accounted for nearly 3 million emergency-room visits, hospitalizations and deaths, according to the CDC. Falls and motor vehicle accidents are among the leading causes of TBI.
A TBI is caused by an impact with the head and can fall anywhere on the spectrum between mild and severe. A concussion is a mild form of TBI, and someone who has suffered a TBI can have impaired memories, changed senses or physical or emotional difficulties.
But those who suffer more severe forms of a TBI might never return to their everyday lives. Some might not be able to hold a job, and others might need full-time medical care.
Northwestern University reported that in the pool of “average” adults with a brain injury, the unemployment rate is 60 percent two years after the TBI. The lifetime costs incurred by a TBI patient range from $85,000 to $3 million, according to the university.
Those are numbers that can financially cripple a family. That’s why if your loved one is involved in an accident that it is so important to consult with an attorney experienced in TBI cases to learn whether your family can be compensated to help with the inevitable medical costs that will mount.