The Cost of Raising a Child with Cerebral Palsy

When your child suffers a brain injury that causes cerebral palsy, it can turn what is supposed to be one of the happiest days of your life into one of the hardest. In such a difficult and emotional moment, money may be the last thing on your mind – but as time goes on, the financial impact of raising a child with cerebral palsy becomes significant.

When you have cerebral palsy, you have it for life. It usually requires long-term supportive care services, and individuals with cerebral palsy often develop other cognitive challenges, including vision loss, hearing impairment, and seizures – all of which can mean higher costs for parents.

How much does it cost to raise a child with cerebral palsy?

The cost of raising a child with cerebral palsy can vary by a lot of factors, including the severity of the condition, geographic location, and availability of financial assistance. That said, the Centers for Disease Control estimates the average lifetime cost of raising a child with cerebral palsy is $921,000 per child.

As large as this number is, it doesn’t account for several other costs, including lost wages by a family member providing full-time care and emergency room visits. It also does not account for inflation since the study was conducted in 2003.

Can I get help paying for my child’s cerebral palsy-related expenses?

While the cost of supporting a child with cerebral palsy is high, several financial assistance options exist, including:

• Government assistance – federal and state governments recognize that people with cerebral palsy often have additional support needs and may offer financial assistance and other support. These programs vary state-by-state, even region-by-region, and can cover some of the costs of supporting a child with cerebral palsy.
• Charity – another option, charities can provide a variety of resources, financial and otherwise, to support children with cerebral palsy and their families.
• Community organizations – like charities, community organizations provide a range of different support systems, including support, counseling, connections, expertise, research, resources, information, equipment, advocacy, and funding. However, like charities, their resources are limited, and they are unlikely to be able to completely cover the additional costs.
• Health insurance – Health insurance can often cover some or all of the cost of medical care associated with cerebral palsy. However, insurance is often expensive or requires a full-time job, which may not be an option for someone caring for a child with cerebral palsy. Additionally, insurance won’t cover any of the “non-medical” costs, which make up an estimated 80.6% of additional costs incurred.

While each of these options may help with some costs and support needs, they don’t cover all costs and often come with restrictions and requirements that make them inaccessible to some parents. If your child’s cerebral palsy was caused by a brain injury, there may be another option that will give you a more significant sum of money to secure your child’s future and quality of life.

Filing a claim in a malpractice lawsuit against the hospital or medical provider that caused your child’s brain injury can secure significant funds to cover the cost of your child’s expenses, including medical treatment, rehabilitation, and living expenses.

The birth injury lawyers at Wais, Vogelstein, Forman, Koch, and Norman have secured over $500 million in settlements and verdicts for our clients, including a record-breaking $229 million dollar verdict. We offer no-cost consultations and work on a no-win, no-fee basis – to eliminate the financial risk to our clients. We work with medical experts in birth injury cases to assess a child’s expected lifetime expenses and pursue suits against medical systems to ensure you don’t pay for someone else’s mistake.

If you suspect a medical mistake, or malpractice played a part in your child’s injury or feel that something wasn’t right before, during, or after birth, we encourage you to reach out to a lawyer today. You can reach our team here on the website or by calling 410-998-3600.

Let us see how we can help you.