FOX45 Morning News – College Medical Care

Sponsored by Gilman and Bedigian.

Anchor: It’s a phone call that no parent wants to get, their college student away from home is in need of medical attention because of some type of accident. Attorney Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian joins us this morning with what students and parents need to know in those types of cases. Good morning.

Charles Gilman: Morning how are you?

Anchor: I’m good, all right so first of all, it’s a terrible phone call, I get but you would hope that the student is insured medically at least through their parents or the school.

Charles Gilman: Correct absolutely and that’s both of those options are now readily available. The schools do offer insurance and more importantly since the health care law is changed, children or adults young under age twenty six can now stay on their parents’ policy.

Anchor: But then you go into different territory depending on the reason for the accident and a lot of times you know kids may be a little more careless or reckless in college engaging in things that could lead to accidents. In a case like that if we’re talking about something that’s brought on by alcohol, you now need to look beyond the medical part of it.

Charles Gilman: Yes because there are all sorts of ramifications for the children who or the young adults who are involved with alcohol and things that they shouldn’t be involved with in school. A lot of the universities and colleges have new programs now where, if some may need to report something or you know or gets medical care for it. If they actually reported to the appropriate officials at the university or college they’re say immune from prosecution or immune from the consequences.

Anchor: So even if they were involved in whatever happened, I mean say it didn’t happen necessarily directly to them but a friend that was with them you know got into some injury because of alcohol and you can tell the campus, this is what happened even though you were involved.

Charles Gilman: It’s a it’s a developing area of the law Patrice and there’s a lot of differences but for example University of Maryland has a policy now where if that child or I keep calling them children but that college student is the one that reports it, they don’t have any ramifications for doing it.

Other than their health or whatever they did to themselves, there’s no disciplinary measures that they will probably face, as a result of it.  The colleges have changed their reporting policies.

Anchor: And in some cases it’s necessary to report it to the local police why would you do that?

Charles Gilman: You know I think what it becomes is a lot of these colleges have their own police or they don’t and these children or young adults don’t know who to report to. So oftentimes they will go to the campus police or the local police department and that’s how those departments get involved in these sorts of incidents.

Anchor: And what situation would they seek out an attorney for what has happened?

Charles Gilman: I think any time that your college age student potential needing to report it or has reported it and they’re worried about the ramifications with the policies changing, a lawyer can help you figure out what it is they should or shouldn’t expect and what it is that the college can and can’t do to them as a result of the reporting or being involved in the incident.

Anchor: Alright good to know and we keep calling them kids because they’re always be our kids no matter how old they are when we send them off.  Thank you so much appreciated alright we need to get over and get another check of the forecast…