Spinal Cord Stimulator Costs After a New Mexico Car Crash

If a car crash has left you or someone you love with ongoing spine pain, a spinal cord stimulator may be part of the medical picture. The cost can add up quickly, and many people want to know whether it can be part of an injury claim.

It is general information about these claims.

What a Spinal Cord Stimulator Is and Why It Comes Up in Injury Cases

A spinal cord stimulator is a device placed in the body to help manage chronic pain. It comes up in crash cases because a crash injury can be the reason a doctor recommends one.

Treatment usually moves in steps. Many patients first try a trial period to see whether the device helps. If the trial helps, a surgeon places the device during an implant procedure. Follow-up visits and device programming come after that. Each step creates records, and those records are the proof a claim needs.

If you’re reading this for a family member, you’re not alone in the process. Many people look into these questions while a loved one is still recovering. The information applies to the injured person, and it can also matter to family members who see the daily effects.

Can the Cost of a Spinal Cord Stimulator Be Part of an Injury Claim?

The trial, the implant surgery, hospital stays and follow-up care can all count if the records link them to the crash.

Medical bills from a crash injury are a common part of what an injury claim seeks. The central question is causation, meaning whether the crash caused the harm. New Mexico’s jury instruction says an act is a cause of injury if it contributes to bringing about the injury and the injury would not have occurred without it, and the act must also be reasonably connected as a significant link to the injury (UJI 13-305 NMRA).

The crash does not need to be the only cause.

Whether a particular cost counts turns on how it links to the crash. Bills, itemized statements and provider notes are the core proof. Ask each provider for complete copies.

Future Care, Replacement Procedures, and Long-Term Costs

For a stimulator, that can include follow-up visits, device programming, and replacement or revision procedures. A written care plan from your doctor shows what is expected and why. Future costs rest on medical opinions in the record, so complete and consistent charts carry real weight.

Many people forget to ask about future visits during appointments. Ask your doctor to note expected follow-up in the chart, and keep a copy of every plan. Gaps in the chart can make future care harder to prove later.

Pain, Limited Activity, and Losses Beyond the Bills

Injury claims often look at losses beyond the bills, such as physical pain, emotional distress and changes to daily life.

These losses are separate from money spent on care. A stimulator often appears in the story of those losses, because it may be part of how a person manages pain each day. Pain may also limit work, sleep, driving or time with family. Proof can come from medical notes, a pain diary kept by the injured person, and statements from people who saw the changes.

Family members may have claims of their own. Under Thompson v. City of Albuquerque, loss of consortium damages belong to the claimant, not to the injured person. Under UJI 13-1810A NMRA, the claimant must show a mutually dependent relationship with the injured person.

For a broader look at these claims, read our spinal cord injury claims overview.

When the Spine Was Already Injured or Degenerating Before the Crash

Many people who need a stimulator had back or neck problems before a crash. The other side may argue the device treats an old condition. Records help answer that. Imaging taken before the crash and after it can show what changed. Treating doctors can explain in writing whether the crash made the condition worse. Our page on pre-existing stenosis in car accident claims goes into more detail.

Fault is the other common argument. New Mexico follows pure comparative negligence. Under Scott v. Rizzo, a plaintiff is no longer totally barred from recovery because of their own negligence. Under UJI 13-2218 NMRA, if the injury was caused by a combination of the defendant’s negligence and the plaintiff’s negligence, the jury reduces the total damages by the plaintiff’s percentage of fault. This instruction is to be used only in cases where there is no apportionment of negligence among defendants or non-parties.

Spinal Injuries Where a Stimulator Is Often Discussed

Neck and spinal cord injuries from crashes can lead to long-term pain, and a stimulator may be one part of that care.

Each injury has its own medical picture. A neck injury can cause pain that lasts well after the crash. Our cervical spine injury guide explains what to do next. Injuries to the lower end of the spinal cord are covered on our conus medullaris crash claims page.

Physical therapy notes, injection records and prescription histories often show what was tried before a stimulator came up. Keep those records with the rest.

Every case is different, and past results do not predict a similar outcome.

Documents to Gather and How to Talk With a New Mexico Injury Lawyer

Start by gathering the crash report, medical bills and device records. Then add the rest as you find them.

• Crash report
• Medical bills and itemized statements
• Operative and implant records
• Device and programming notes
• Pharmacy records
• A pain diary
• Pay stubs and records of time missed from work

Under NMSA § 66-7-213, no accident report may be used as evidence in any civil or criminal trial arising out of an accident, except as that section otherwise provides. Keep a copy anyway, so the basic facts of the crash are on file.

Keeping records organized early makes the later review of a claim clearer for everyone involved. Keep them in one folder, sorted by date.

If you’re researching a stimulator after a crash, or caring for a family member who has one, you don’t have to sort through these records alone. Reach out to El Gringo Law through our contact form for a free first consultation that is confidential and carries no obligation. Josh Wood, the lawyer responsible for this page, is licensed in New Mexico and Arizona.

Frequently asked questions

Whether a specific cost counts turns on that link.