Spinal cord injury or paralysis in Dallas: finding care and a spinal cord injury lawyer
Baylor Scott & White's rehab institute in Dallas is one of 18 federal spinal cord model system centers. A spinal cord injury claim generally has to be filed within 2 years in Texas. If a city vehicle was involved, notice is due in six months.
Last checked November 9, 2026 · Official sources (33)
Where do people in Dallas get care for a spinal cord injury?
Most start at a Level I trauma center. Dallas has three: Parkland Memorial Hospital, Baylor University Medical Center and Methodist Dallas Medical Center. Parkland is also the main teaching hospital for UT Southwestern.
Rehab often moves to Baylor Scott & White Institute for Rehabilitation, at 909 N. Washington Ave., phone (214) 820-9300. The Dallas center is one of 18 nationwide named by a federal grant as a spinal cord injury model system. At the hospital, ask for the case manager or social worker. Texas HHS tells families to do that about needs at discharge.
A physical medicine doctor usually leads the rehab team, and vocational counselors may join it. Their notes later become the base of any life care plan.
Does Texas have a program that helps after a spinal cord injury?
Yes. The Comprehensive Rehabilitation Services program helps eligible people with a traumatic brain injury, a traumatic spinal cord injury or both live independently at home. There are limits. You must be 15 or older, live in Texas and be a citizen or lawful permanent resident. You must also use insurance, Medicare or Medicaid first.
The program is a help, not a replacement for a claim against the person or company that caused the harm.
Who pays for spinal cord injury care in Dallas?
| Source | What to know |
|---|---|
| Health insurance, Medicare or Medicaid | Pays first, and Medicare must be repaid from a settlement |
| State rehab program | Pays after insurance for eligible people |
| Hospital lien | Needs admission within 72 hours |
| The at-fault party | Medical recovery is limited to amounts paid or owed |
| Auto policy | Texas requires $30,000 per person at minimum, and PIP can pay household members' reasonable expenses |
The long-term numbers are large and they are national. The national spinal cord statistics center puts indirect costs, such as lost work, at $97,787 a year in 2025 dollars. Only 18 percent of people were employed at year 1. A life care plan tries to put numbers on all of this for your case.
What if a Dallas city or state vehicle caused my spinal cord injury?
Texas waives immunity for the operation or use of a government motor vehicle. The City of Dallas charter requires written notice within six months, stating when, where and how you were hurt, and the amount of damages. Send it to the Office of Risk Management, 1500 Marilla 6A South, 214-671-9458.
Caps apply. Texas cities are limited to $250,000 per person and $500,000 per occurrence, and local governments like the hospital district to $100,000 per person. That makes it more important to look for every other party, such as a contractor or a driver.
How do I get my spinal cord injury records in Dallas?
Parkland's Release of Information office is at 5200 Harry Hines Blvd., 1st floor, Suite 01-603. Bring a photo ID. Baylor Scott & White routes online record requests to HealthMark Group. Ask for imaging, rehab notes and billing.
A sworn billing affidavit can prove charges were reasonable. It must be served within 90 days after the defendant answers, or earlier.
Questions
How long do I have to sue after a spinal cord injury in Dallas?
Generally 2 years in Texas. If the City of Dallas is the target, give written notice within six months.
Does an incomplete injury change my claim?
It changes the medical picture. Some messages still pass in an incomplete injury, and doctors predict the long-term outcome over time.
Will my own fault matter?
In Texas, more than 50 percent fault bars recovery, and less reduces it.
Spinal cord injury or paralysis in Dallas? See if you are owed money.
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See if I’m owed moneySources (33)
- Baylor Scott & White Institute for Rehabilitation, checked 2026-11-09. “Baylor Scott & White Institute for Rehabilitation - Dallas is one of 18 centers nationwide”
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003, checked 2026-11-08. “not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues”
- Dallas City Charter, Chapter XXIII, Section 1, checked 2026-11-08. “within six months after the injury was received”
- Texas Health and Human Services, checked 2026-11-09. “assists eligible people who have a traumatic brain injury (TBI), traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI), or both, function independently in their home and community”
- Texas HHS, Comprehensive Rehabilitation Services, checked 2026-11-09. “Participants must first use all available personal medical benefits, such as medical insurance, Medicare or Medicaid, before they can use CRS program funding”
- Tex. Prop. Code § 55.002, checked 2026-11-09. “For the lien to attach, the individual must be admitted to a hospital not later than 72 hours after the accident.”
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 41.0105, checked 2026-11-09. “recovery of medical or health care expenses incurred is limited to the amount actually paid or incurred by or on behalf of the claimant”
- Texas DSHS, Texas Trauma Facilities, checked 2026-11-08. “PARKLAND MEMORIAL HOSPITAL 7/1/2028 E DALLAS 75235”
- Texas DSHS, Texas Trauma Facilities, checked 2026-11-08. “BAYLOR UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER 4/1/2028 E DALLAS 75246”
- Texas DSHS, Texas Trauma Facilities, checked 2026-11-08. “METHODIST DALLAS MEDICAL CENTER 12/1/2027 E DALLAS 75203”
- Parkland Health, About, checked 2026-11-09. “Parkland is the primary teaching hospital for the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.”
- Baylor Scott & White Institute for Rehabilitation, Dallas, checked 2026-11-09. “Our Dallas hospital is designated as a Traumatic Brain Injury Model System.”
- Baylor Scott & White Institute for Rehabilitation, Dallas, checked 2026-11-09. “909 N Washington Ave Dallas, TX 75246 Tel:(214) 820-9300”
- Texas HHS, Crucial First Steps After a Brain Injury, checked 2026-11-09. “Contact the case manager or social worker at your hospital.”
- NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “A doctor specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation usually leads the rehabilitation team.”
- NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “rehabilitation psychologists, vocational counselors, nutritionists, a case worker”
- Texas HHS, Comprehensive Rehabilitation Services, checked 2026-11-09. “Be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident and a Texas resident”
- CMS, checked 2026-11-09. “because it must be repaid to Medicare when a beneficiary receives a settlement, judgment, award, or other payment”
- Texas Transportation Code 601.072, checked 2026-11-09. “$30,000 for bodily injury to or death of one person in one collision”
- Texas Insurance Code 1952.151, checked 2026-11-09. “provide for payment to the named insured in the policy, members of the insured's household”
- National SCI Statistical Center, checked 2026-11-09. “indirect costs averaged $97,787 per year in 2025 dollars”
- National SCI Statistical Center, checked 2026-11-09. “Since 2015, 18% of persons with tSCI are employed at year 1”
- Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code 101.021, checked 2026-11-09. “arises from the operation or use of a motor-driven vehicle or motor-driven equipment”
- Dallas City Charter, Chapter XXIII, Section 1, checked 2026-11-08. “when, where, and how the exact injury occurred; (2) the full extent of the injury; and (3) the amount of damages claimed or asserted”
- City of Dallas, Notice of Claim Form, checked 2026-11-08. “OFFICE OF RISK MANAGEMENT 1500 MARILLA 6A SOUTH DALLAS, TEXAS 75201 214-671-9458”
- Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code 101.023, checked 2026-11-09. “Liability of a municipality under this chapter is limited to money damages in a maximum amount of $250,000 for each person and $500,000 for each single occurrence”
- Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code 101.023, checked 2026-11-09. “liability of a unit of local government under this chapter is limited to money damages in a maximum amount of $100,000 for each person and $300,000 for each single occurrence”
- Parkland Health, Medical Records, checked 2026-11-08. “5200 Harry Hines Blvd, 1st floor, Suite 01-603”
- Baylor Scott & White, Request Copies of Your Medical Records, checked 2026-11-08. “we have partnered with HealthMark Group”
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 18.001, checked 2026-11-09. “90 days after the date the defendant files an answer”
- NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “the spinal cord is still able to send some messages to or from the brain”
- NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “Doctors are now able to predict with reasonable accuracy the likely long-term outcome of an SCI.”
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 33.001, checked 2026-11-08. “a claimant may not recover damages if his percentage of responsibility is greater than 50 percent.”