Hospital Bills vs. Liens and Insurer Claims in Mississippi

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

We found no Mississippi statute that gives a hospital or doctor a lien on your injury settlement; a compendium reports a burn-care lien was repealed effective July 1, 2019. A provider may still be owed its bill, and Medicaid and health plans have their own rights.

No statutory provider lien that we found

We searched Mississippi's statutes on liens and public welfare and found no general hospital or provider lien on a personal injury recovery. A compendium of subrogation law says there is none and that a lien limited to burn care was repealed effective July 1, 2019. A provider may still be owed its bill and may have contract rights, for example under an admission agreement or a letter of protection. Ask for an itemized bill and anything you signed.

Who can reach your recovery

Medicaid, by statute, after attorney fees and collection costs (Miss. Code 43-13-125); Medicare, under federal law; your own UM insurer, to the extent of what it paid, but it must pay its proportionate share of the costs of recovery (83-11-107); and a health plan, under its contract and the made-whole rule.

Do I still owe the hospital?

A lien is a security right in the settlement; the bill itself is a separate debt. Without a lien the hospital cannot claim your settlement directly, but it may sue or send the account to collection, so negotiate the balance rather than ignoring it.

Next steps

See our post on the made-whole rule, the Medicare and Medicaid post and the Mississippi medical lien calculator.

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