Bill > H1129

This bill aims to protect injury victims from having their compensation significantly reduced by medical bill reimbursements. Specifically, it modifies existing law to limit how much health insurers (including health maintenance organizations, individual and group medical insurers, and disability insurers) can recoup from a person's legal settlement or court award after covering medical expenses from an accident. Under the proposed legislation, an insurer can only claim reimbursement proportional to the medical benefits they provided relative to the total tort damages. For example, if an insurer paid $10,000 in medical expenses and the total damages are $100,000, they can only seek reimbursement of 10% of the settlement. The bill also provides a mechanism for either the insurer or the injured person to petition a court to review the fairness of a settlement and its allocation, following similar procedural requirements used in workers' compensation cases. This approach is intended to prevent medical bills from consuming a large portion of an injury victim's compensation, ensuring they receive a more equitable recovery for their damages.

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https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H1129