When you suffer a very severe injury, such as a spinal cord injury, it is often permanent. As such, if you are seeking compensation from the person who was responsible for that injury, you must consider the lifetime costs—not just the immediate damages.
It is important to note that every spinal cord injury is unique. There are a few different types to consider, such as high tetraplegia, low tetraplegia, paraplegia and more. Additionally, every case is unique with regard to the type of recovery a person experiences or the skills and abilities that may be lost or retained.
That said, the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation has produced some estimates regarding lifetime costs, which can be valuable to consider.
High tetraplegia
One of the most severe injuries that the Foundation covers is high tetraplegia, which is an injury between the C1 and C4 vertebrae. In the first year, it is estimated that the costs will exceed $1 million. It will also lead to subsequent annual costs of more than $180,000.
For a 50-year-old with such an injury, the estimated lifetime costs are just under $2.6 million. If the person who suffers the injury is 25 years old, then the estimate rises to $4.7 million.
These estimates take into account only the medical costs themselves. The Foundation is quick to note that they do not consider things like lost wages or reduced earning capacity. If someone is 25 years old when they are injured and misses out on millions of dollars in potential future earnings, for example, those damages have to be added to the estimates noted above.
Either way, you can see that a spinal cord injury creates very significant costs and damages, and that is why it is so important for you to understand your legal options.