Does anyone else find this slightly creepy?:
Yesterday I received a letter from a subrogation service that apparently works in conjunction with my (former) health insurer, notifying me that some claim filed on my son included a diagnosis code that automatically triggers an inquiry into whether payment for my son's treatment could be the responsibility of someone else.
Enclosed was a questionnaire asking "if in the past three (3) years any medical treatment received by you or your covered dependents resulted from one of the following situations: 1) Motor Vehicle Accident. 2) Work related injury (Workers' Compensation claim). 3) Medical Malpractice. 4) Products Liability. 5) Slip and Fall on another person's property. 6) Any other situation in which another person/party may be responsible for your injuries."
The letter does not say which of my son's many doctor's visits the company is investigating. But my assumption is that it is a fall he took in our backyard two summers ago, which necessitated a trip to the Georgetown University Hospital ER to get his lip stitched up.
What I'm taking away from this letter is that, if my son had taken his spill in a friend's backyard--maybe, say, tripping over a loose flagstone--my insurance company would be looking to sue to recoup the cost of his stitched lip.
How charming. I hadn't realized that we had reached the point where it isn't up to me whether or not I sue someone over an injury incurred by my kin on their property.
If I've misinterpreted this action in some way, please enlighten me. Otherwise, I may wind up too terrified to visit friends from now on on the off chance I might trip down their basement stairs and lead to their financial ruin.
--Michelle Cottle