Key Takeaways
- A life care plan prices the rest of a life. It is an itemized, year-by-year projection of the medical care, equipment, home changes and personal help a seriously injured person will need, with the frequency and cost of each item.
- Illinois juries award future care that is reasonably certain. Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions 30.06 and 30.09 allow the present cash value of medical care and necessary help “reasonably certain” to be needed in the future, and the life care plan is how that certainty is proved.
- The totals can reach millions. The National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center estimates the lifetime cost of high tetraplegia at $6.42 million for someone injured at 25, before any lost wages.
- Medical costs get special protection. Under 735 ILCS 5/2-1117, every defendant found liable is jointly and severally liable for past and future medical expenses, even one found less than 25% at fault.
- A plan is only as strong as its support. The defense will hire its own expert, and Supreme Court Rule 213 limits trial testimony to opinions disclosed in advance, so the plan has to be built early and on solid medical ground.
When an injury is catastrophic, the hospital bills that have already arrived are only the beginning. A spinal cord injury, a severe brain injury or an amputation can mean decades of therapy, medication, equipment, home modifications and help with daily life. None of those costs exist yet on the day a case settles or goes to trial, and in Illinois there is usually only one chance to recover them.
A life care plan is how those future costs are identified, priced and proved. This guide explains what goes into one, who prepares it, and how Illinois law treats the numbers it produces, from the jury instructions that govern future damages to the statutes that decide who pays.
The Short Answer
A life care plan is a written report, usually prepared by a certified life care planner, that lists every medical and support need a seriously injured person is expected to have for the rest of their life, how often each will be needed, and what each will cost. In an Illinois injury case it is the main evidence of future medical and caretaking expenses. An economist typically converts the plan’s yearly costs into a single present cash value, which is the figure a jury is instructed to award. Because future medical costs are often the largest part of a catastrophic injury claim, the quality of the life care plan frequently decides whether a settlement or verdict will actually cover the care.
What Is a Life Care Plan?
A life care plan starts with the injured person’s diagnosis and works forward. The planner reviews the medical records, meets with the injured person and their family, and consults the treating doctors about what care will be needed and for how long. Each need is then written down as a line item with a start date, a frequency, a duration and a cost drawn from providers and suppliers in the person’s area.
The result reads less like a medical report and more like a budget for a life. A typical plan for someone with paraplegia might include annual visits to a physiatrist and urologist, a replacement manual wheelchair every few years, bladder management supplies every month, pressure-relief cushions, a wheelchair-accessible vehicle, a ramp and a widened bathroom, and a set number of hours of attendant care each week.
| Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| Physician and specialist care | Neurologist, physiatrist, urologist, orthopedist and primary care visits over the person’s lifetime |
| Therapy and rehabilitation | Physical, occupational and speech therapy, counseling, and vocational rehabilitation |
| Medication and supplies | Prescriptions, catheters, wound care supplies and other recurring items |
| Equipment | Wheelchairs, prosthetics, hospital beds, lifts and communication devices, with replacement schedules |
| Home and vehicle changes | Ramps, accessible bathrooms, widened doorways and adapted vehicles |
| Attendant and home care | Hours of personal care, nursing or housekeeping help, or facility care if needed |
| Future procedures and complications | Surgeries the doctors expect, and treatment for known complications of the injury |
Who Prepares It
Life care plans are usually written by a certified life care planner, commonly a registered nurse, rehabilitation counselor or other clinician with specialized training. The planner does not diagnose the injury. The medical foundation comes from the treating physicians and, where needed, retained medical experts, and a careful planner ties every line item back to a doctor’s recommendation or a documented medical need.
Two other experts often work alongside the planner. A physician, frequently a physiatrist (a rehabilitation medicine specialist), may testify about the injured person’s prognosis and life expectancy. And a forensic economist takes the planner’s yearly costs, accounts for expected growth in medical prices, and discounts the total to present cash value.
Why Illinois Law Makes the Plan Central
Illinois civil juries are instructed using the Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions, published by the Illinois Supreme Court’s committee on civil jury instructions. Four of them explain why a life care plan carries so much weight.
Future care must be “reasonably certain”
IPI 30.06 allows a jury to award “the present cash value of the reasonable expenses of medical care, treatment and services reasonably certain to be received in the future.” IPI 30.09 does the same for “the present cash value of such expense reasonably certain to be required in the future” for necessary help, which covers attendant and caretaking costs. A jury cannot award future care that is only possible. The plan, and the medical testimony behind it, is what shows each item is reasonably certain.
The jury considers how long the need will last
IPI 34.01 tells the jury to determine the damages that will arise in the future and, where they are permanent, that it “may consider how long the plaintiff” is “likely to live.” That is why life expectancy is often one of the most contested questions in a catastrophic case, and why the NSCISC publishes life expectancy tables alongside its cost data.
Future expenses are reduced to present cash value
Under IPI 34.02, the jury must determine the present cash value of future medical and caretaking expenses, defined as “the sum of money needed now, which, when added to what that sum may reasonably be expected to earn in the future, will equal the amount of the expenses” when they must be paid. As a simple illustration, at an assumed 2% net return, a $100,000 expense due in 10 years has a present cash value of about $82,000. The same instruction says damages for pain and suffering, disability, loss of a normal life, disfigurement and emotional distress “are not reduced to present cash value.”
How the Plan Becomes Evidence
A life care planner hired by the injured person is a “controlled expert witness” under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 213(f)(3), defined as “the party’s retained expert.” For each one, the party must identify the subject matter of the testimony, “the conclusions and opinions of the witness and the bases therefor,” the witness’s qualifications, and “any reports prepared by the witness about the case.”
That disclosure has teeth. Rule 213(g) provides that the information disclosed “limits the testimony that can be given by a witness on direct examination at trial.” A need that was left out of the disclosed plan may not be allowed in front of the jury. This is one reason a life care plan should be thorough from the first draft and updated as the person’s condition changes.
Expect the defense to respond with its own planner or physician, and to argue that fewer services are needed, that cheaper alternatives exist, or that life expectancy is shorter. A plan tied closely to the treating doctors’ recommendations and to real local prices is much harder to cut.
Illinois Rules That Protect the Numbers
| Rule | What it does | Law |
|---|---|---|
| Joint and several liability for medical costs | Every defendant found liable is responsible for the full past and future medical and medically related expenses, even one under 25% at fault | 735 ILCS 5/2-1117 |
| Itemized verdicts | The jury’s verdict must separate economic loss from non-economic loss, so the future care award is visible on its own line | 735 ILCS 5/2-1109 |
| Comparative fault | The injured person’s share of fault reduces the whole award, and more than 50% bars recovery | 735 ILCS 5/2-1116 |
| Collateral source reduction | On the defendant’s timely motion, medical benefits above $25,000 paid or payable by the date of judgment may be deducted, unless someone has a right to be repaid, and never by more than 50% of the judgment | 735 ILCS 5/2-1205.1 |
| Prejudgment interest | Interest at 6% a year from the date the suit is filed, adjusted for the defendant’s written settlement offers and capped at 5 years | 735 ILCS 5/2-1303(c) |
Why joint and several liability matters here
Section 2-1117 generally makes a defendant whose fault is less than 25% of the total “severally liable” for most damages, meaning it pays only its own share. Medical costs are the exception: “all defendants found liable are jointly and severally liable for plaintiff’s past and future medical and medically related expenses.” In a case with several defendants, that means the life care plan’s medical costs can be collected in full from any liable defendant, which matters when one of them has little insurance.
Your share of fault still counts
Under Section 2-1116, an injured person found more than 50% at fault recovers nothing, and at 50% or less “any damages allowed shall be diminished in the proportion to the amount of fault attributable to the plaintiff.” A $4 million life care plan award with 20% fault assigned to the injured person becomes $3.2 million. Our guide to Illinois’ fault-based accident law explains how that split is decided.
Prejudgment interest rewards early, fair offers
Since July 1, 2021, Section 2-1303(c) adds interest at 6% a year to personal injury judgments, starting on the date the lawsuit is filed. If the defendant made a written settlement offer within the time the statute sets and the judgment exceeds it, interest runs only on the difference; if the judgment is equal to or less than that offer, no prejudgment interest is added. Interest accrues for no more than 5 years, and governmental defendants do not pay it.
Workers’ Compensation Is Different
If the injury happened on the job, the Workers’ Compensation Act works differently. Section 8(a) requires the employer to pay for “all the necessary first aid, medical and surgical services, and all necessary medical, surgical and hospital services thereafter incurred,” limited to what “is reasonably required to cure or relieve from the effects of the accidental injury,” along with rehabilitation. If “the employee is unable to be self-sufficient the employer shall further pay for such maintenance or institutional care as shall be required.”
Because the employer pays medical care as it is incurred, a life care plan is less central in a workers’ compensation claim that stays open. It becomes important when a settlement would close out the right to future medical care, and in any separate lawsuit against a third party, such as the driver who caused a work-related crash. Our Illinois workers’ comp settlement chart explains how those settlements are valued.
When a Life Care Plan Makes Sense
Not every injury case needs one. A life care plan is expensive to prepare and is usually reserved for injuries with lasting, costly care needs, including:
- Spinal cord injuries and paralysis, where equipment, attendant care and complications span decades. Our guide to spinal cord injury costs and treatment covers the medical side.
- Moderate and severe brain injuries, which may require long-term therapy, supervision and cognitive support. See our overview of the average settlement for a traumatic brain injury.
- Amputations, where prosthetics must be replaced and refitted throughout life.
- Severe burns, which can require repeated reconstructive surgery, scar management and psychological care. Our Illinois burn injury lawyers handle those claims.
Timing matters. A plan is most reliable once the injured person’s condition has stabilized enough for doctors to predict long-term needs, but the lawsuit deadline does not wait for that. Most Illinois injury suits must be filed within 2 years under 735 ILCS 5/13-202, and claims against a local public entity within 1 year under 745 ILCS 10/8-101(a). Our guide to the Illinois statute of limitations explains the exceptions.
How Families Can Help Build a Stronger Plan
- Keep every record, including discharge instructions, therapy notes and prescriptions, and ask for copies as you go.
- Write down what doctors recommend, especially anything about future surgery, equipment or long-term care.
- Keep a care diary. Note the hours family members spend helping with bathing, dressing, transfers, driving and medication. Unpaid family help is still a need the plan should price.
- Save quotes and receipts for equipment, home changes and vehicle modifications.
- Track medical liens and bills, since hospitals and insurers may have repayment rights against a settlement. Our guide to Illinois medical liens explains the limits.
- Do not settle early. A quick offer made before long-term needs are known almost never accounts for the future care a life care plan would capture.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a life care plan in a personal injury case?
A life care plan is a written, itemized projection of the medical care, equipment, home changes and personal help a seriously injured person is expected to need for the rest of their life, with the frequency and cost of each item. In an Illinois injury case it is the main evidence of future medical and caretaking expenses, which a jury may award when they are reasonably certain to be needed.
Who prepares a life care plan?
Life care plans are usually prepared by a certified life care planner, often a nurse or rehabilitation professional, working from the medical records, an interview and assessment of the injured person, and input from the treating doctors. An economist then typically converts the yearly costs into a single present cash value figure.
When do you need a life care plan?
A life care plan is most useful when an injury will need care for years or for life, such as a spinal cord injury, a moderate or severe brain injury, an amputation or a serious burn. It is usually prepared once the injured person’s condition has stabilized enough for doctors to predict long-term needs.
How does an Illinois jury value future medical costs?
Under Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions 30.06 and 30.09, the jury may award the present cash value of medical care and necessary help reasonably certain to be needed in the future. Under IPI 34.02, present cash value is the sum needed now which, with what it can reasonably be expected to earn, will equal the future expense when it must be paid.
Is pain and suffering reduced to present cash value in Illinois?
No. IPI 34.02 tells the jury that damages for pain and suffering, disability, loss of a normal life, disfigurement and emotional distress are not reduced to present cash value. Only economic losses such as future medical costs, caretaking and lost earnings are discounted.
Can the insurance company challenge a life care plan?
Yes. Defendants commonly hire their own life care planner or physician to argue that fewer services are needed or that they cost less. Under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 213(f)(3), each side must disclose its retained experts’ opinions, the bases for them, their qualifications and their reports, and Rule 213(g) limits trial testimony to what was disclosed.
What if a defendant was only partly at fault?
Under 735 ILCS 5/2-1117, every defendant found liable in a negligence or strict product liability case is jointly and severally liable for the injured person’s past and future medical and medically related expenses, even a defendant less than 25% at fault. Your own share of fault, if any, still reduces the award under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116, and a finding of more than 50% bars recovery.
Is a life care plan used in Illinois workers’ compensation cases?
Less often. Under 820 ILCS 305/8(a), the employer must pay for necessary medical, surgical and hospital care reasonably required to cure or relieve the effects of a work injury, plus rehabilitation and, if the worker cannot be self-sufficient, maintenance or institutional care. A life care plan can still matter when a settlement closes out future medical rights, or in a separate lawsuit against a third party.
How long do I have to file a catastrophic injury claim in Illinois?
Most Illinois personal injury lawsuits must be filed within 2 years under 735 ILCS 5/13-202. A claim against a city, county, park district or other local public entity generally must be filed within 1 year under 745 ILCS 10/8-101(a). Because a life care plan takes time to build, it helps to start well before either deadline.
A settlement or verdict is usually final. If it does not account for the care you or your family member will need in 10, 20 or 40 years, there is rarely a way to go back for more. Our Chicago catastrophic injury lawyers work with life care planners, physicians and economists to document those needs, and we represent injured people across Illinois. For spinal cord injuries, see our Illinois spinal cord injury page and our Naperville, Aurora and Champaign spinal cord injury teams. For brain injuries, see our Chicago brain injury lawyers.
Make Sure Future Care Is Counted
If a serious injury will need care for years, we will review whether your claim needs a life care plan and who should prepare it.
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Sources
- Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions, Civil: IPI 30.06 (medical expense, past and future), IPI 30.09 (caretaking expenses, necessary help), IPI 34.01 (damages arising in the future) and IPI 34.02 (discount to present cash value). Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Jury Instructions in Civil Cases. illinoiscourts.gov
- Illinois Supreme Court Rule 213(f)(3) (controlled expert witnesses) and 213(g) (limitation on testimony). illinoiscourts.gov
- Code of Civil Procedure, 735 ILCS 5/2-1109 (itemized verdicts), 5/2-1116 (modified comparative fault), 5/2-1117 (joint liability), 5/2-1205.1 (reduction in amount of recovery), 5/2-1303(c) (prejudgment interest) and 5/13-202 (2-year personal injury limitation). ilga.gov
- Workers’ Compensation Act, 820 ILCS 305/8(a) (medical, rehabilitation and maintenance). ilga.gov
- Local Governmental and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act, 745 ILCS 10/8-101(a) (1-year limitation). ilga.gov
- National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury Facts and Figures at a Glance (March 2026), Historical Lifetime Costs. uab.edu
This article is general information about Illinois law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. The value of future care in any case depends on its own medical facts and evidence. Please speak with a lawyer about your own situation.
