The costs of cerebral palsy can be overwhelming

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Texas couples who are expecting a child may be overwhelmed with all of the health-related information and treatment they receive before their little one arrives. Although it may feel overwhelming, most of these pregnant women receive adequate explanation of their treatment and administration of care, allowing them to give birth to healthy and happy babies. In some instances, though, medical professionals, for one of a number of reasons, make mistakes that cause serious harm to babies. These birth injuries can have lifelong consequences that can have physical, emotional and financial ramifications.
One commonly suffered birth injury is cerebral palsy. There is no cure for this medical condition, so those who are affected by it need to be prepared to adequately care for it over the long-term. This can be especially challenging as some estimates, including one presented by the CDC, place the cost at approximately $1 million. That very well may only be enough to cover medical expenses, though, which means that the actual damages, including lost wages, may be significantly higher.
Parents who have a child who suffers from cerebral palsy can be hit with these costs pretty early on, too. In fact, one study found that children who suffer from cerebral palsy can have medical costs that are 10 times more than those children who do not have cerebral palsy. When cerebral palsy causes an intellectual disorder, the disparity can jump 25 times.
Figuring out how to care for a child with cerebral palsy has a number of challenges. Amongst them is simply coming up with the money to cover costs associated with medical care. If a child’s medical condition was caused by the negligence of a medical professional or hospital, though, then compensation may be recoverable through a medical malpractice claim. To learn more about the legal process of pursuing one of these claims, parents can speak with an experienced attorney of their choosing.