Florida PIP Chiropractor in Lighthouse Point

The short version. If you were in a crash in Florida, you have 14 days from the accident date to be seen by a qualifying provider or your PIP medical benefits are gone. A chiropractic physician is a qualifying provider for that first visit. Your policy carries $10,000 in PIP, but only $2,500 of it applies unless a medical doctor, DO, dentist, PA or nurse practitioner documents an emergency medical condition. Call (954) 902-6371 and we will get you in quickly.

What Florida PIP actually is

Personal Injury Protection is the no-fault medical coverage every registered Florida vehicle must carry under Florida Statute 627.736. It pays for your own crash injuries through your own policy, whoever caused the accident. The minimum policy is $10,000, and it covers you, relatives who live with you, and in many cases passengers, pedestrians and cyclists who do not have PIP of their own.

PIP reimburses 80 percent of reasonable and necessary medical expenses and 60 percent of lost wages, up to the policy limit, and includes a $5,000 death benefit. Some policies carry a deductible of up to $1,000, which is applied before the 80 percent split. Your declarations page tells you which you have.

The 14-day rule

Since the 2013 reform (House Bill 119), PIP medical benefits are payable only if you receive initial services and care within 14 days of the crash. This is the rule that catches the most people, because crash pain is often delayed by two or three days and it is easy to let two weeks slip by while you wait to see if it settles.

The statute names who can provide that initial care: a hospital or hospital-owned facility, an emergency transport provider, a licensed physician (MD or DO), a dentist, a chiropractic physician, or a physician assistant or advanced practice registered nurse working under one of them. A first visit here satisfies the requirement. Follow-up care then has to be consistent with the diagnosis from that initial visit, which is why a thorough documented examination on day one matters.

If you were seen in an emergency room or urgent care the day of the accident, that visit already started your PIP benefits. Bring the paperwork; it becomes part of your record here.

$10,000 or $2,500: the emergency medical condition rule

This is the part of PIP that almost nobody explains before it costs them money. The full $10,000 medical benefit applies only when a physician (MD or DO), dentist, physician assistant or advanced practice registered nurse determines that you have an emergency medical condition (EMC), meaning acute symptoms severe enough that the absence of prompt medical attention could reasonably be expected to result in serious jeopardy to your health, serious impairment of bodily function, or serious dysfunction of a body organ or part.

Without that determination on file, your PIP medical benefit is capped at $2,500. Chiropractors are not on the list of providers who can make the EMC determination. That does not stop you from treating here; it means that when your examination shows injuries that plausibly meet the EMC standard, we coordinate an evaluation with a medical provider who can document it, so that the benefit you already paid for is available for the care you need.

What "we accept PIP" means at this office

• We verify your PIP coverage and claim status with the carrier before or at your first visit.
• You sign an assignment of benefits and we bill the insurer directly. Under the statute, the insurer has 30 days from written notice of a covered loss to pay or dispute a bill.
• Every visit is documented with the diagnosis codes, treatment codes and examination findings a PIP claim requires. The same records serve your attorney if you have one.
• We accept PIP whether the crash happened in Lighthouse Point, on I-95, on Federal Highway, or anywhere else in Florida.

What PIP covers at a chiropractic office, and what it does not

Covered when medically necessary for your accident injuries: the initial and follow-up examinations, chiropractic adjustments, therapeutic exercise and rehabilitation, electrical muscle stimulation and ultrasound, non-surgical spinal decompression for disc injuries, Class IV laser therapy for inflamed soft tissue, and the reports and records for your claim.

Not covered by PIP under Florida law, no matter who provides it: massage therapy and acupuncture. We offer massage in the office, but it is not billed to PIP. Care unrelated to the crash is also outside PIP.

Injuries we treat under PIP

The injuries that bring most accident patients through the door are whiplash and cervical strain, lower back strain and disc injuries from the seat-belt and bracing forces of a collision, headaches that start at the base of the skull, shoulder injuries from the belt or steering wheel, and the numbness or tingling that follows nerve irritation. Many of these produce little pain in the first 24 to 72 hours. Read why pain is delayed after a car accident and the symptoms of whiplash if you are deciding whether you are hurt enough to come in. The honest answer is that an examination inside the 14-day window costs you nothing under PIP and protects the benefit either way.

What to do in the first 14 days

1. Get the crash report. Florida Highway Patrol or the responding police department files the Florida Traffic Crash Report. The exchange slip from the scene has the report number.
2. Open the PIP claim with your own insurer. Report the accident, ask for the claim number, and ask whether your policy has a PIP deductible.
3. Be examined within 14 days. Call (954) 902-6371. Accident patients are scheduled quickly, usually within a day or two.
4. Keep every record. ER paperwork, prescriptions, photographs of the vehicle and any visible injuries, and a simple daily note of symptoms. Our guide on documenting injuries for PIP walks through it.
5. Follow the treatment plan. Gaps in care are the most common reason a carrier disputes bills.

Getting here from anywhere in Broward or south Palm Beach County

The office is at 3320 N. Federal Highway (US-1) in Lighthouse Point, between Sample Road and Copans Road, with free parking in front of the building and a wheelchair-accessible entrance. From I-95, exit at Sample Road or Copans Road and head east to Federal Highway. Accident patients also reach us from Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton and Coral Springs.

Florida PIP questions, answered

This page explains Florida's PIP statute in plain language for patients. It is not legal advice. Coverage details depend on your policy; your insurer and, if you have one, your attorney are the authorities on your specific claim.