Montana Code Annotated
Part 3. Measure of Damages
27-1-308. Allowed recovery and permissible evidence -- reasonable value of medical or health care services or treatment -- actions arising from bodily injury or death -- subrogation rights

27-1-308. Allowed recovery and permissible evidence -- reasonable value of medical or health care services or treatment -- actions arising from bodily injury or death -- subrogation rights. (1) (a) The purpose of this section is to abrogate the common law collateral source rule, court decisions, and all prior statutes applicable to determining the amounts recoverable by plaintiffs as damages for medical services or treatment.
(b) This section does not modify duties owed in accordance with 33-18-201.
(2) In an action arising from bodily injury or death, a plaintiff's recovery may not exceed amounts actually:
(a) paid by or on behalf of the plaintiff to health care providers that rendered reasonable and necessary medical services or treatment to the plaintiff;
(b) necessary to satisfy charges that have been incurred and at the time of trial are still owing and payable to health care providers for reasonable and necessary medical services or treatment rendered to the plaintiff; and
(c) necessary to provide for any future reasonable and necessary medical services or treatment for the plaintiff.
(3) The jury shall determine its award for the reasonable value of medical services or treatment without consideration of any charges for medical services or treatment that were included on health care providers' bills but resolved by way of contractual discount, price reduction, disallowance, gift, writeoff, or otherwise not paid. Evidence admissible to establish the reasonable value of medical services or treatment is limited to evidence identifying the amounts actually:
(a) paid by or on behalf of the plaintiff, regardless of the source of payment, to satisfy the financial obligation for medical services or treatment that the plaintiff received;
(b) necessary to satisfy the financial obligation for medical services or treatment rendered to the plaintiff that have been incurred but not yet satisfied. This evidence may not include any reference to sums that exceed the amount for which the unpaid charges could be satisfied if submitted to any health insurance covering the plaintiff or any public or government-sponsored health care benefit program for which the plaintiff is eligible, regardless of whether the incurred but not yet satisfied charges have been or will be submitted to the plaintiff's health insurance or public or government-sponsored health care benefit program.
(c) necessary to satisfy the financial obligation for any reasonable and necessary future medical services or treatment of the plaintiff. This evidence may not include any reference to sums that exceed the amount for which the future charges of health care providers could be satisfied if submitted to any health insurance covering the plaintiff or any public or government-sponsored health care benefit program for which the plaintiff is eligible.
(4) If prior to trial a defendant, a defendant's insurer or authorized representative, or any combination of the three pays any part of the financial obligation for medical services or treatment provided to the plaintiff, then prior to the entry of judgment the court shall reduce the sum awarded to the plaintiff at trial by the amount of the payment or other collateral source as defined in 27-1-307.
(5) Except for subrogation rights specifically granted by state or federal law or provided by contract, there is no right to subrogation for any amount paid or payable to a plaintiff from a collateral source for an award entered as provided in subsection (2).
History: En. Sec. 2, Ch. 628, L. 1987; amd. Sec. 564, Ch. 56, L. 2009; amd. Sec. 4, Ch. 327, L. 2021.

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