Florida Injury Attorney Blawg
A lien is a claim held by a party against the settlement or judgment in a personal injury or death case for reimbursement of damages it has paid in the case. This blog will discuss two types of liens commonly arising in death cases, the Medicare lien and the workers’ compensation lien.
Medicare pays medical expenses while both medical and indemnity (money) benefits are paid by the employer and its insurance carrier in Florida workers’ compensation cases. Each type is often paid in association with cases where the victim ends up dying.
42 CFR sec. 411.24 sets forth Medicare’s lien rights. Section 440.39, Florida Statutes covers the employer/carrier’s lien rights in workers’ compensation cases.
Section 786.21 of Florida’s Wrongful Death Act defines the type of benefits available in civil law wrongful death cases. Section 440.16 does this in the context of workers’ compensation cases. In some instances, a recovery under both laws is available for the same accident.