Minor Injury during PT

Cindy15905

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Not sure if this question is in the right thread- please move if need be.

In October, my DD tripped during a scheduled early am run with her other contracted Marine buddies and MECEPs. She banged her knee pretty good. They made her go to the clinic on campus. Good news = no real injury other than a monster bruise and 3 days on crutches. As we are heading into the next semester, I saw the medical charges had not been paid for, so we went ahead and paid them so she could register for classes. I guess I assumed (you know what they say about assuming!:rolleyes:) since she got hurt while with the Marines this would somehow fall under the NROTC-MO or ROTC responsibility to pay. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
 
I wish I could say otherwise- but you - or more specifically you and your medical insurer are going to be on the hook for this. Your daughter isn't eligible for Tricare
 
Well, I guess that is why those charges sat on her account for a few months. What about if she gets injured during OCS or something of that nature? Is there ever a case when we are not personally responsible for her medical costs?
 
ROTC Medical Coverage

Cindy,

Most injuries during ROTC Training are covered by the Department of Labor - Office of Workers Compensation. Forms have to be filled out and submitted. Contact the ROTC Instructors/Cadre.

Depending on the cost or whether your insurance company accepts the bills for payment, it may not be worth pursuing through these Federal Workers Compensation channels.

Chapter 55 title 10 US Code.

Good luck.
 
My understanding is that if you are injured during some training (ROTC Directed and designated training - not out for a run to prep for ROTC fitness test) - you are authorized to receive immediate care at a Military treatment facility and you may be eligible for DoL or DVA medical benefits. But if you have medical insurance- I assume that just like with TRICARE- the government is the payer of last resort, so your insurance will be billed first for followup treatment outside the MTF and then at best you will get the balance from the Government. I don't know how that system works and if you are not sure if you need to continue to cover your daughter on your health care plan (personally I would but maybe you don't really need to do so)- then I would ask the NROTC department to give you specific information.
 
My understanding is that if you are injured during some training (ROTC Directed and designated training - not out for a run to prep for ROTC fitness test) - you are authorized to receive immediate care at a Military treatment facility and you may be eligible for DoL or DVA medical benefits. But if you have medical insurance- I assume that just like with TRICARE- the government is the payer of last resort, so your insurance will be billed first for followup treatment outside the MTF and then at best you will get the balance from the Government. I don't know how that system works and if you are not sure if you need to continue to cover your daughter on your health care plan (personally I would but maybe you don't really need to do so)- then I would ask the NROTC department to give you specific information.

This is absolutely correct. The government is the payer of last resort.
 
I got hurt during PT one time and everything was covered through workers comp. If she is contracted with ROTC she is most certainly covered by workers comp and usually cadre are very adamant about getting that paperwork completed to make sure the cadet is well taken care of.

Caveat- depending on the clinic you go to, sometimes it's easier to just use your insurance up front and have the Army reimburse you. I used my insurance up front since it covered quite a bit for the Dr visits and physical therapy, then just filled out workers comp to reimburse me for my out of pocket costs.

If you have any questions about it, I may be able to help a little. I had a knee injury as well.
 
I got hurt during PT one time and everything was covered through workers comp. If she is contracted with ROTC she is most certainly covered by workers comp and usually cadre are very adamant about getting that paperwork completed to make sure the cadet is well taken care of.

Caveat- depending on the clinic you go to, sometimes it's easier to just use your insurance up front and have the Army reimburse you. I used my insurance up front since it covered quite a bit for the Dr visits and physical therapy, then just filled out workers comp to reimburse me for my out of pocket costs.

If you have any questions about it, I may be able to help a little. I had a knee injury as well.

She is contracted through the Marines- I am not sure if they handle things differently or if each branch is under the same umbrella when it comes to injuries. We did end up using our insurance, so I guess I am looking at asking about reimbursement. I have been working very hard at not being a "helicopter mom", so I did not get involved at all when it happened, thinking the USMC would take care of what needed to be done. So now I think I may have to do some legwork, because we are talking about $500-$600.
 
She is contracted through the Marines- I am not sure if they handle things differently or if each branch is under the same umbrella when it comes to injuries. We did end up using our insurance, so I guess I am looking at asking about reimbursement. I have been working very hard at not being a "helicopter mom", so I did not get involved at all when it happened, thinking the USMC would take care of what needed to be done. So now I think I may have to do some legwork, because we are talking about $500-$600.

I'm not sure how the USMC handles that either. This would be one of the few times it is appropriate to be a helicopter parent because by this age, people my age still aren't experts on insurance and the healthcare system so we tend to still rely on parental help/advice. Have your cadet find the go to cadre member for this type of stuff and figure out what she needs to fill out, what reciept she needs to give to them so they can sort it all out. Then you can help her get all the paperwork sorted and completed.
 
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