Future Medical Expenses: How They Are Calculated in Mississippi Accident Injury Settlements

The days following a severe collision on I-55 or a T-bone crash at a busy intersection in Hattiesburg are often a blur of emergency rooms, insurance calls, and immediate pain. Your primary focus is naturally on the bills sitting on your kitchen table right now—the ambulance fee from the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) or the initial surgical costs. However, for those who suffer catastrophic or permanent injuries, the bills you see today are often just the tip of the iceberg.

When an injury requires years of therapy, repeat surgeries, or lifetime care, the financial impact extends decades into the future. Settling a claim based only on what you have paid so far can leave you financially devastated down the road.

The Difference Between Past and Future Damages

In Mississippi personal injury law, economic damages are split into two main categories: past medical expenses and future medical expenses. Past expenses are relatively easy to calculate. We can look at the invoices from Forrest General Hospital or your explanation of benefits statements to reach an exact dollar figure to the penny.

Future medical expenses are far more complex because they involve predicting the unknown. You are asking an insurance adjuster or a jury in Hinds County to pay you now for medical care you haven’t yet received. Because you cannot simply guess at these numbers, Mississippi law requires that future damages be proved with “reasonable probability” or “reasonable certainty.” You cannot recover damages for possibilities or speculation; there must be substantial evidence that the medical need is likely to occur.

How Are Future Medical Expenses Calculated in Mississippi?

Calculations for future medical expenses rely on expert medical testimony and economic analysis to establish the necessity and cost of long-term care with reasonable certainty.

To prove these damages, your legal team typically collaborates with medical experts to outline the specific treatments you will need, such as future surgeries or ongoing physical therapy. A Life Care Planner then creates a detailed report itemizing these needs, while a forensic economist calculates the total cost, accounting for medical inflation and the present cash value of the money.

The Role of Life Care Planners

In cases involving severe injuries—such as traumatic brain injuries (TBI) or spinal cord damage—we often retain a certified Life Care Planner. This professional reviews your entire medical file, interviews you and your family, and consults with your treating physicians.

They produce a comprehensive report, often called a Life Care Plan, which acts as a roadmap for your future health needs. This plan includes specific costs for:

• Routine Medical Care: Annual checkups with specialists (e.g., orthopedists or neurologists).
• Therapeutic Modalities: Ongoing physical, occupational, or speech therapy sessions.
• Medications: Prescription painkillers, anti-inflammatories, or other long-term drug regimens.
• Diagnostic Testing: Annual MRIs, CT scans, or X-rays to monitor hardware or injury progression.
• Home Modifications: Installing wheelchair ramps, widening doorways, or retrofitting bathrooms in your home.

The Role of Economists

Once the medical needs are established, an economist determines what those services will cost 10, 20, or 30 years from now. Medical inflation rates traditionally outpace standard inflation. An economist will:

• Project the cost of medical services over your life expectancy.
• Adjust for the specific inflation rates of the healthcare sector.
• Discount the final figure to “present value,” which is the amount of money you need today to pay for those future bills as they arise, assuming safe investment of the principal.

What Types of Long-Term Care Costs Are Recoverable?

Recoverable long-term costs include any medical service or device reasonably necessary to treat, manage, or mitigate the effects of the injury over the victim’s lifetime.

Mississippi courts allow recovery for a wide range of future medical needs, provided they are directly linked to the accident. This is not limited to hospital stays; it encompasses the full spectrum of support required for a victim to maintain their quality of life and functionality.

Common Categories of Future Expenses

• Reconstructive or Revision Surgeries: Many orthopaedic injuries, such as those treated with metal plates and screws, require follow-up surgeries years later to remove hardware or address arthritis.
• Pain Management: For chronic pain conditions, this may include nerve ablation procedures, steroid injections, or implantation of spinal cord stimulators.
• Assisted Living and Nursing Care: If an accident victim in Gulfport or Biloxi can no longer live independently, the cost of in-home nursing assistants or a long-term care facility is recoverable.
• Durable Medical Equipment: This includes the replacement costs for wheelchairs, prosthetics, hospital beds, and orthotic devices, which wear out and must be replaced every 5 to 10 years.
• Mental Health Treatment: Trauma is not just physical. Future costs often include long-term counseling or psychiatric care for PTSD, depression, or anxiety resulting from the crash.

The Importance of Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI)

One of the most critical concepts in calculating future damages is Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI). MMI is the point at which your treating physician determines that your condition has stabilized and is unlikely to get significantly better, even with further treatment.

Reaching MMI does not mean you are “healed.” It simply means you are as good as you are going to get. For a client recovering from a severe back injury, MMI might mean they have 80% of their former range of motion and will live with chronic low-level pain forever.

Why We Wait for MMI

Attempting to settle a case before reaching MMI is dangerous. If you settle two months after a crash, but six months later a doctor discovers you need a spinal fusion surgery, you cannot ask for more money. By waiting until a doctor declares MMI, we gain a clear picture of your permanent limitations and future needs. This allows us to demand a settlement that accurately reflects the reality of your life moving forward.

Can I Reopen My Settlement If My Injuries Get Worse Later?

No, once you sign a release of liability and accept a settlement check, you generally cannot reopen the claim or sue for additional compensation, even if your medical condition deteriorates.

The settlement agreement serves as a final contract between you and the insurance company. In exchange for the payment, you release the at-fault party and their insurer from all future liability related to the accident. This is known as the “one bite at the apple” rule.

The Finality of Release Forms

When you sign a release, you are often agreeing to language that explicitly covers “known and unknown” injuries. This is why thorough medical investigation is critical before signing anything.

• Exceptions are extremely rare: Only in cases of fraud, duress, or mutual mistake regarding the fundamental nature of the contract can a settlement sometimes be challenged, but this is legally difficult and rare in Mississippi.
• Protecting Yourself: The only way to prevent being undercompensated for worsening injuries is to ensure your initial settlement calculation is robust and accounts for worst-case scenarios confirmed by medical experts.

The Impact of Pre-Existing Conditions

A common defense tactic in Mississippi is to argue that your need for future care is due to a pre-existing condition, not the accident. For example, if you are claiming future costs for back surgery, the insurance company will look for any medical record showing you complained of back pain ten years ago.

The “Eggshell Plaintiff” Doctrine

Mississippi law follows the “eggshell plaintiff” doctrine. This rule states that a defendant takes the victim as they find them. If you had a mild, asymptomatic back condition that was aggravated and made symptomatic by a drunk driver on Highway 49, the defendant is liable for the aggravation of that injury. They cannot escape liability simply because you were more susceptible to injury than the average person. We work with your doctors to clearly differentiate between what was pre-existing and how the accident accelerated or worsened the need for future care.

Protecting Your Settlement Proceeds

Recovering compensation for future medical expenses creates a new challenge: making sure the money lasts. If a settlement provides $200,000 for surgeries that will happen ten years from now, that money must be available when the time comes.

Structured Settlements

In many cases involving significant future damages, we may recommend a structured settlement. Instead of a single lump sum, the funds are placed into an annuity that pays out on a set schedule. This can be designed to release funds specifically when future surgeries are anticipated or to provide a monthly income for ongoing therapy costs. Structured settlements also offer tax advantages, as the interest earned within the annuity is generally tax-free in personal injury cases.

Medicare Set-Asides (MSA)

If you are a Medicare beneficiary or reasonably expect to be one within 30 months of settlement, federal law requires that we protect Medicare’s interests. We may need to create a Medicare Set-Aside (MSA) account. A portion of your settlement designated for future medical care related to the injury is placed in this account. You must use these funds to pay for injury-related care until the funds are exhausted, at which point Medicare will resume primary coverage. Ignoring this step can jeopardize your future Medicare eligibility.

Securing Your Future After a Serious Accident

Predicting the future is never easy, but in the legal world, it is a necessity. If you have been seriously injured, you only get one opportunity to secure the financial resources you will need for the rest of your life. Do not let an insurance adjuster rush you into a “quick and easy” settlement that ignores the long road of recovery ahead. 

At Mississippi Car Accident Attorney, we have the resources and the network of medical and economic professionals necessary to build a comprehensive view of your future needs. Whether your accident occurred on the busy streets of Jackson, the highways of the Delta, or the coastal roads of Gulfport, we are ready to fight for a result that protects you today and years down the line.

Contact us today or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free consultation. Let us review your medical records, listen to your story, and help you understand the true value of your claim.