In all but a handful of cases, a spinal cord injury will permanently alter the life of a Issaquah resident. The emotional fallout from suffering paralysis or other physical limitations due to s spinal cord injury is profound.
Moreover, treatment for serious injuries to the spinal cord can cost millions of dollars over a victim’s life.
According to statistics, over the life of a victim, even the most minor of spinal cord injuries will cost anywhere from over $1 million to over $1.5 million in terms of long term care and other rehabilitative care.
For injuries involving paralysis of one’s entire body, the cost of care is at least over $2.5 million and may exceed $4.7 million.
The exact cost depends on the age of the victim at the time of the accident. Moreover, these figures do not include lost income because of the victim’s inability to work. On average, those additional costs run over $70,000 a year but will depend on a victim’s salary at the time of his or her accident.
Motor vehicle accidents are the most common cause of spinal cord injuries, accounting for 38% of spinal cord injuries in a given year. While not all of these accidents are necessarily due to the negligence of another driver, many of them are.
Interestingly, falls also account for a sizeable percentage of spinal cord injuries. Experts attribute just a hair over 30% of spinal cord injuries to falls of various types. Again, while not all of these falls are necessarily grounds for a lawsuit, they often are the result of unsafe working conditions, unsafe premises or other types of negligence.
