GS 8-58.1 Injured party as witness when medical charges at issue

Injured party or guardian can testify to amount of medical charges if copies of the charges accompany the testimony. This testimony establishes a rebuttable presumption of the reasonableness of the amount of the charges.

Cases Jury must find total amount reasonable unless the defendant rebuts the presumed fact of reasonableness. Jury can still find that the expenses, even though reasonable in amount, were not reasonably necessary for the proper treatment of plaintiff’s injuries. Jacobsen v. McMillan, 124 N.C. App. 128, 476 S.E.2d 368 (1996).

Plaintiff must show that treatment for which charges were incurred was reasonably necessary and that charges were reasonable in amount. Chamberlain v. Thames, 131 N.C. App. 705, 509 S.E.2d 443 (1998).

The medical expenses presumption of GS 8-58.1 does not preclude the jury from finding that plaintiff's medical expenses were not reasonable necessary for the proper treatment of his injuries. Blackmon v. Bumgardner, 135 N.C. App. 125 (1999).

-- Robert Holmes (holmes23@bellsouth.net), February 17, 2001

Answers

We wonder how this is going to work.

-- Robert Holmes (holmes23@bellsouth.net), February 22, 2001.