Hospital Liens vs. No-Fault Insurer and Health Plan Claims in Hawaii

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

A Hawaii hospital, doctor, dentist or surgeon has a lien on a judgment recovered for personal injuries if it files a notice with the court clerk before satisfaction of the judgment is docketed. A no-fault insurer is reimbursed fifty per cent of duplicated PIP benefits.

Who has the lien

HRS 507-4 gives a lien, subject to any common-law lien, on a judgment for personal injuries or its proceeds, for the agreed or reasonable value of services or accommodations furnished, to a hospital that furnished room, board, supplies, facilities or accommodations for the injuries, and to a dentist, doctor, physician or surgeon who treated them.

How it works

The lien exists if, before satisfaction of the judgment is docketed, the provider files in the office of the chief clerk of the circuit court (or the district court clerk) a notice of the value of its services. If the proceeds are not enough, they are shared pro rata among the lienors, without priority among them, after all common-law liens are paid. The judgment debtor may pay the judgment to the clerk and be released, and the lien then attaches to the sum paid. The lien is enforced by an action in the circuit court like a foreclosure.

Settlements

The statute is written for a person who "recovers judgment." It does not say how it applies to a settlement without a judgment, and we did not read cases on that. Ask an attorney whether a provider can assert a lien against your settlement, and whether it filed a timely notice. You may still owe the bill.

No-fault insurers

When your tort recovery duplicates PIP benefits already paid, the motor vehicle insurer is reimbursed fifty per cent of the PIP benefits paid, up to the maximum limit (431:10C-307). It is not a hospital lien.

Health insurers and Medicaid

A health plan's claim comes from its contract; see what Hawaii law says and does not say. Medicaid and Medicare follow their own rules; see the Medicare and Medicaid post. Enter each claim, and whether a timely notice was filed, in the Hawaii medical lien calculator.

This is general information, not legal advice, and the state comparisons above are illustrative, not an exhaustive survey. Confirm how Hawaii's rules apply to your specific case with a licensed Hawaii attorney.