Neal Flannery met up recently with TBI Education Leaders Mitch Albom and John Prosser at the Biami Educational Conference.
Also shown in a picture below is Philip Joseph (NI project manager), Mitch Albom, and Dr Ray Kamoo (NI program director – Michigan)
Pictures:
Please contact NeuroInternational if you know of a traumatic brain injury rehabilitation or neurobehavioral conference we may be interested in attending. We regularly attend a variety of National conferences to train our staff and promote our services. We also provide free CEU inservices to hospitals, adjusters, and case managers.
Some key points to mention to the Senators in urging them to vote No.
1. This is a “freedom of choice” matter. When a motorcyclist is in a vehicle crash, first responders (police and EMS) have to respond, and the local hospital ER department is required to provide treatment; and depending on the extent of injuries lengthy rehabilitation, and possibly long term care in a nursing facility will be required. The insurance requirement in the law does not cover all of the costs of the attendant. Thus turning this cost to the government, which is unnecessary and preventable.
2. “There’s no research or evidence proving that motorcycle helmets and helmet laws reduce injuries.” This is a difficult claim when the research is clear and all done by government agencies such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Association, and Centers for Disease Control among them that all provide unequivocal documentation. All of these studies can be easily found on their respective websites.
The two states that had eliminated their motorcycle helmet laws have since reinstated their helmet law. Those states are Nebraska and Louisianna. Both states did so due to the significant increase in motorcyclists deaths and serious injuries costing the state and local government.
We request your Senator to consider this information and truly make an informed choice. With over 80 percent of Michigan voters opposed to the motorcylce helmet law repeal, we ask of you to cast your vote as “NO” to the repeal of Michigan’s Motorcycle Helmet Law Repeal, S.B. 291.
Dear Friends,
It is with great appreciation that I accept The Brain Injury Association of Michigan’s Legacy Society Founders’ Award. I regret that I cannot be there in person, but i am most humbled that the BIAMI would bestow this award upon me. It is a great honor to know that no-fault benefits have assisted so many citizens in Michigan on their road to recovery after a devastating accident because of the legislation we created nearly four decades ago.
Allow me to take a moment to highlight some of the achievements of the legislation that we can be most proud of.
In 1973, Michigan faced multiple pressures to reform its automobile insurance system. We responded to these pressures by creating the Michigan’s Auto -No-Fault Insurance Act. The promise was to:
1) ensure that those injured in an automobile crash received all reasonably necessary medical care for their life time;
2) minimize the need for litigation as a result of automobile crashes;
3) ensure that a fair and equitable insurance premium would be paid for such coverage.
Many states have followed Michigan’s lead in creating similar auto no-fault insurance laws; however, Michigan’s Auto No-Fault Insurance Act has always been revered as the ultimate standard.
It is my opinion that this has truly been good public policy for Michigan residents. Seriously injured persons are provided optimal medical care that enables them to achieve maximum recovery, including the possibility of returning to work and becoming taxpayers again. Under this legislation, injured parties and families have the lifetime medical coverage needed so that they can avoid the threat of bankruptcy due to medical cost and/or the shifting of these costs to the states’ Medicaid program.
Additionally, a cutting edge brain injury rehabilitation industry has been created, providing thousands of new jobs and enhancing the communities where they operate. Michigan has become a brain injury rehabilitation center of excellence which has allowed our citizens to return to their communities. All of this is truly our legacy to share.
With Appreciation,
Governor William G Milliken
Check out our latest video and be sure to read our latest blog entry dealing with the
The following represent the state of the law as of January 1, 2006. Please note that worker’s compensation law can be complex and these laws and policies are subject to amendment at any time. If you need help with a worker’s compensation issue, please consult a licensed attorney.
Is Worker’s Compensation Compulsory? Yes
Are Waivers Permitted? Yes. However corporate officers may elect to be exempt. In the construction industry, no more than three corporate officers may be exempt, and each must demonstrate at least 10% ownership.
Numerical Exceptions: Real estate salespersons and brokers whose earnings are solely commissions are exempt from workers’ compensation coverage. Employers in the construction industry with one or more employees are required to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Florida statute excludes some individuals from the definition of “employee,” including, under certain circumstances, owner-operators of motor vehicles transporting property and passenger vehicle-for-hire drivers.
Choice of Physician: Employee selects a physician from list supplied by carrier or managed care organization when medical care is provided through an authorized managed care arrangement. Employee may petition for a one-time change of physician.
If medical care is provided outside an authorized managed care arrangement, the employer chooses the physician.
Waiting Period For Comp Benefits After Injury: 7 days
Compensation is retroactive if disability continues for what period of time from the date of injury? More than 21 days
Attorney Fees Permitted: 20% first $5,000; 15% second $5,000; 10% on amount received over first 10 years, 5% on balance, statute
Part of the healing process and rehabilitation of TBI Patients is finding ways and activities that help them feel part of the community and help make a difference in this world. A couple of residents at Neuro International have been spending hours daily on raising money for war veterans by getting donations from local business and setting up events to help raise money to send supplies to current war heros abroad and help local veterans. If you are interested in participating or donating please contact us at 941 870 4129
Be sure to check out our blog on our events and activities weekly to be up on our latest helping hands!
Be sure to visit our Youtube and Twitter, follow us @Neuro_Int_Fl
Since 1973, Michigan’s no-fault system has been in place and it doesn’t matter who is at fault in an accident. Each drivers insurance covers them.
Michigan no-fault insurance pays for medical and loss wages, along with damage to non-vehicular property like buildings and fences. With one exception, no-fault does not pay for vehicle damage. Only if Car A is properly parked in a “safe and reasonable” manner and is damaged by Car B, Car B’s insurer must pay for repairs.
Put simply each drivers insurance is responsible for damage to the owners vehicle and the drivers even if the other driver is to blame. For drivers without collision insurance and not to blame for the collision can filea $500 mini-tort small claims action against the motorist at fault to help pay repairs.
A. Unlimited lifetime coverage for medical and rehabilitative costs including hospital stays, out-patient treatment, prescriptions, diagnostic tests, braces, wheelchairs, beds, nursing services, home attendant care, medical services performed by family members, and reasonable transportation expenses incurred in obtaining medical treatment. Handicap accommodations to an injured person’s home and automobile may be included within the scope of medical benefits.
B. Wage loss protection that requires the no-fault insurer to pay 85% of salary or wage losses for three years. Wage loss computations are based on one’s actual loss of earnings. This includes salary increases, overtime, cost of living adjustments, and other similar items which might have been earned during the period of disability. The statutory maximum amount for wage loss is approximately $70,000 annually.
C. Replacement services (for lawn mowing, house cleaning, etc.) of $20 daily, for as long as three years.
D. The family of a person who dies in a Michigan care accident is entitled to medical, funeral and possibly wage “survivor loss benefits” under the no-fault law.
Catastrophic Coverage Under Michigan’s No Fault Insurance
By at least one measure, Michigan has the best auto insurance protection in the country. Since it was enacted in 1973, the State’s unique no-fault law has provided car accident victims with unlimited and lifetime coverage for catastrophic medical expenses.
Michigan is the only state with such a no-cap benefit. The Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association (MCCA) was created in 1978 by the state Legislature as a non-profit organization to reimburse no-fault insurance companies for each Personal Injury Protection (PIP) medical claim they pay in excess of $480,000. That means that the insurance company pays the entire claim, but is reimbursed by the MCCA for medical costs over $480,000.
All auto insurers operating in Michigan are assessed $143.09 per vehicle in 2010-11 to cover the catastrophic medical claims assessments, which they pass on to policyholders.
The MCCA paid out $811 million in 2009 for claims resulting from catastrophic injuries motorists suffered in automobile accidents. Since 1979, there have been over 24,500 reported claims, which will cost an estimated $71 billion.
Michigan’s No-Fault Act severely limits lawsuits for bodily injuries, and then only if the other driver is at least 50% at fault. Negligence suits are successfully brought if they involve death, disfigurement, disability, time missed from work, and medical treatment for:
Michigan car accident attorneys advise victims to file a lawsuit with the court within three years of the date of an accident.
All resident motorists must carry minimum no-fault liability coverage before registering their vehicle. The minimum auto liability amounts are $20,000 bodily injury liability for one person, $40,000 bodily injury liability for all injuries in one accident, and $10,000 property damage liability.
On average, Michiganders pay more for collision and comprehensive coverage than drivers in any other state because of bad roads, bad weather, a plethora of deer, big vehicles and the high cost of labor.
The average driver in the state will pay $979 per year to carry the minimum amount of coverage required to comply with the Michigan car insurance requirements. The average auto insurance premium for residents in Michigan is $1,969 in 2010; the national average is $1,54
Days after an initial injury a damaging second wave is found in some traumatic brain injury patients and British researchers are searching for the reason why.
Nearly 1 million patients with TBI annually in the US experience a baffling second round of brain damage within days of the initial injury while they seem to be “recovering”. Clinical trials are now in progress using a Monitoring Device that is able to monitor second by second brain chemistry. This device which is being developed at the Imperial College in London uses the “microfluidic method” to measure glucose rapidly as an indicator of activity in fractions of a second
What researchers call depolarization is a decreases in brain activity in patients following initial trauma spreading from the injury site with chemical changes and knocking out nerve cells. Researchers say taking large amounts of glucose to reactivate the cells makes monitoring glucose levels help the doctors tell if a patient is taking a turn for the worse.
This new device is also being tested on patients who have suffered stroke or aneurysm.
The study was published in Chemical & Engineering News.
