Will Florida PIP Cover Me if I am Traveling out of Florida?

Will Florida PIP Cover Me if I am Traveling out of Florida?

Alan Himmel, DC PA

In your own car: YES.
In a car that is not yours, including a rental: NO
In Mexico:  NO
In Canada:  YES

Here is a scenario:  You are a Florida resident and have a Florida registered and insured car and travel north to go skiing in the Smoky Mountains.   You decide to pile your family into the family SUV, and make a trip. You manage to get through Florida and Georgia safely, but when you get into Tennessee, someone runs a red light and smashes into your car causing injuries. In this scenario, you were in your own car, so there IS coverage for you and your family.

Let's say you find that there is no snow in North Carolina and decide to travel into Canada?  Yes, there is PIP coverage for injuries to you and your family if you have an accident in Canada.

HOWEVER, lets say you decide to FLY to North Carolina, and rent a car.  You have an accident in North Carolina while occupying a rental car.  NO, there is no coverage under your Florida PIP policy. Same is true if you are in a friend's car in NC, It's not your car, so no PIP. 

Let's say you are in your relative's car in NC, providing that the relative is a NC resident, No Florida PIP here either.  How about if you are in a relative's car in NC and the relative is a Florida resident with car insurance coming from Florida?  No coverage here either unless you and the relative LIVE together.

In Mexico in your own car and there is NO coverage.

In regard to resident relatives:  There are some companies that will deny a claim if they determine that the policyholder did not disclose all people in the household when the policy was purchased.  They will deny the claim based on "material misrepresentation."    So, always let the company know all people living in the house, no matter if the addition of these extra people in the house will increase the cost of the policy.  If you hide this information from them, they will find out and may deny your claim.

I'm not a lawyer.  I am a chiropractor with 26 years experience treating auto accident patients, and I have been exposed to many different coverage scenarios.  Get all legal opinions from a licensed attorney.

Nursemaid's Elbow in a Young Child. Cause, signs, and reduction.

                                       Nursemaid's Elbow

Dr. Alan Himmel

It is never a good idea to pull or tug a young child by the arm.  This action may create what is called a nursemaid's elbow. 

What essentially happens is that a person, who is trying to control an uncooperative child, grabs the child by the arm.  The child of course, still is not cooperative, and fights back, by pulling.  The resulting injury is that the head of the radius, subluxates at the elbow causing a lot of pain, guarding, and the inability of the child to want to use the arm or hand.

Often times, the radial head pops back in by itself and the pain and guarding will disappear on its own, allowing for almost instantaneous pain relief.  But, sometimes, the joint will not "go back in" without a little help.

I don't recommend doing trying to fix this at home, because without knowing for sure whether it is truly a radial head subluxation or a fracture, it is possible to cause more pain and injury.  However, if you are confident the child has a nursemaid's elbow, or if it has happened before (children who have had this injury, may tend to have it again) then this is what you can do to fix it.

Carefully supinate the hand in front of the child. Then, while palpating the radial head with your fingertip and just a little bit of pressure, use your other hand to slowly flex the arm at the elbow.  You may have to go past 90 degrees of flexion, but you will feel, with very little effort, the radial head click, and pop back into the correct position.  The child may cry a little, but the relief is instantaneous, and within a few minutes, the child should be acting normal again and giving high fives with the injured hand.

See this Fantastic Whiplash Video Infographic. This is Why you have so Much Pain!

Dr. Himmel

I have been treating patients who have sustained whiplash for practically the last 2 decades. 

 Many people are unaware that even a small impact rear end collision can cause significant pain and impairment in certain cases.  Symptoms include pain, stiffness, headache, shoulder pain, arm pain, numbness, tingling, and weakness in the upper extremities.

If you have been injured in a rear end collision, do not hesitate.  You must get examined and if treatment is necessary, you should begin as soon as possible to try and prevent future, permanent, chronic problems.  

Call our office Today:  954-659-8600

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