Wednesday, January 16, 2008

MVA with unique circumstances

Two months ago I was in an MVA in which I was not at fault. First, my unique situation: I am a C5 quadraplegic that is wheelchair bound. Of my limbs, I am strictly dependent upon my right arm and right leg. On my right hand, only my thumb, index finger and pinky finger are functional. With all that said, I lead a fairly independent life as stand up comic (in addition to a part time day job). I drive a modified Chevy Uplander with a dropped floor and a ramp that folds out. I drive the vehicle in my power chair, as it simply pulls up to the steering wheel. In my accident I was driving 40 mph in the middle lane. The at fault driver came to a stop sign and then proceded into the road. I hit him flush in the driver's side of his SUV. Both airbags deployed. The dash was crushed into my right knee and the airbag deployed on my right hand. I was taken to the hospital in an ambulance. The driver took full responsibility as did his insurance company. At the ER they did not initially see any breaks/fractures (though they did note my right knee was swollen) and sent me home. Once home I realized my right hand wouldn't work right. I couldn't grip, type or write (for what it's worth, someone else typed this). My pinky finger was incredibly weak and wouldn't function as usual. To the average person that may seem insignificant. To me, it's devestating when you already have a limited infrastructure. After a week my knee kept swelling. Ultimately seperate orthopaedic surgeons diagnosed me with a non-displaced fracture in my right leg and ligament damage in my right hand. They immobilized my right hand and leg (which, for me, is tantamount to total paralysis). After adequate healing time they are recommending 3-4 months of PT/OT for my hand and leg to regain range, strength and general use. There was $14,000 worth of damage to my vehicle (which does not include the modifications). There was an additional $1500 in damage to my wheelchair and $1000 dollars in medical bills. I am only able to prove lost wages from my part-time job of $1400. What should I expect from this situation? Thank you in advance.

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