Maximum Medical Improvement
“MMI,” which stands for maximum medical improvement, is an important concept in the fields of personal injury law. Since many personal injury cases take an injured person’s MMI into consideration, it is key to understand what it means. Understanding the maximum medical improvement in Connecticut can help you get your child the justice that they deserve.
What is MMI?
When a person is injured and someone else is at fault, the injured party and their family might fight for compensation. Compensation is based on injuries, so it is important that the injured party understand the extent of their injuries before asking for compensation.
An injured person is at their maximum medical improvement once they reach a point beyond which any further treatment will not better their medical situation. In other words, when a person reaches their MMI, things are as good as they’re going to get. Most if not all treatment related to the injury has already taken place. It is at this point that compensation can accurately be determined.
This doesn’t mean that the injured person will no longer receive any kind of medical attention. It just means that any treatment going forward will be to maintain the person’s current health, rather than improve it. Also, a person reaching their MMI doesn’t mean that their medical condition won’t get worse. But, once a person hits their MMI, it will be easier to evaluate the rate at which their condition is expected to worsen.
Predicting the Future
Once your child reaches their MMI, a lawyer will be better able to predict their future damages. These damages can include medical costs (including future), lost wages, lost earning capacity, compensation for pain and suffering (personal injury cases only) and loss of enjoyment of life (personal injury cases only). As the injured party in a personal injury case, it is impossible to know what damages your child is entitled to until they reach MMI.
Permanent Impairment Rating
Your child’s doctor is the one who decides when they have reached their maximum medical improvement. Once your child reaches their MMI, the doctor will give your child a “permanent impairment rating.” A permanent impairment rating is a percentage that stands for the diminished functioning of your child’s body. There are two different kinds of permanent impairment ratings. The first kind is specific to the injured part of your child’s body. The second kind is for your child’s whole body.
Discuss MMI with a Connecticut Attorney
It is impossible to know for sure when your child will reach their MMI. It might be frustrating, as an injured party, to have to wait to receive the damages rightfully owed to your family. But, your attorney should understand that waiting is the key to getting everything you deserve.
If your child has been wrongfully injured, your family does not have to go through the recovery process alone. To learn more about maximum medical improvement, contact an attorney.