Financial Cost of Birth Injuries

Birth injuries can take a major toll on a newborn’s life and negatively affect the entire family. Naturally to a large extent, the type of birth injury and its severity will play a critical role in treatment and recovery; however, one thing is clear: birth injuries can get very expensive. Often, there is a large financial component involved, and parents of children who have suffered birth trauma may find themselves wondering about the cost of getting their child the resources he or she needs.

Medical Costs

Medical costs are generally the most immediate costs associated with a birth injury. However, these costs can also be ongoing in the event of injuries that cause long-term damage to the child. Medical costs can vary quite a bit depending on the nature of the injury. For example, a few scrapes and bruises caused by forceps cost significantly less to treat than advanced nerve damage or issues caused by oxygen deprivation during birth. However, expect medical costs for treating a newborn to be somewhat higher than they would be to treat an adult or older child since newborns are more delicate and often require specialized treatment.

Therapy Costs

If your child’s birth injury results in long-term physical or mental disabilities, you should strongly consider therapy in order to make the child as functional as possible. Even children who are not expected to make a full recovery can generally become much more functional with dedicated therapy. Therapy represents a significant cost for parents of children with birth injuries.

Childcare Costs

Depending on the extent of your child’s injuries, you may need to hire childcare professionals who have experience with children with mental or emotional problems. This can easily add costs to your childcare bill, as you can no longer go the traditional route and hire the neighbor’s son or daughter to babysit for you. However, childcare is one area where you do not want to cut corners, as the longer, your child spends with a babysitter or daycare professional the larger an impact it can have on his or her overall health. Your area may have resources in place to help pay for childcare, and some childcare professionals are willing to work with parents who cannot cover the full cost of childcare.

Ongoing Costs

Some birth injuries may result in ongoing costs for the child. These costs are usually medical in nature, but may not be medication, doctor visits or other expenses we usually associated with medical bills. For example, children with certain types of palsy may have difficulty chewing and swallowing solid food and so may need a special diet that can be a significant cost. Other children may have weakness in their limbs and need to use crutches or braces to move around. Even if your child does not have special medical needs like these, children who have suffered a birth injury are more likely to need follow-up medical and psychological care. You may find yourself paying for additional doctor and psychologist appointments well into your child’s older years.

There are a number of resources available for parents of children who have suffered a birth injury. Check the listings in your area for therapists and pediatricians who can help provide advice, as well as charitable and government organizations that can help ease the financial burden.

Finally, know that you do not have to face these challenges alone. If you believe that your child’s birth injuries were caused by medical negligence it is imperative that you seek legal representation from a law firm such as McGehee ☆ Chang, Landgraf, Feiler that specializes in birth injuries. In some instances, you may be able to offset many of the costs associated with treating and managing your child’s birth injuries with the legal damages gained from a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Call us today at 713-864-4000 for a free consultation.