Spinal cord injury in Midland: where care is and what to document

After a serious spine injury near Midland, the state lists Midland Memorial as a Level III trauma center and University Medical Center in Lubbock as Level I. The Texas CRS program helps people with spinal cord injuries live on their own. A spinal cord injury suit generally has to be filed within 2 years.

Last checked November 9, 2026 · Official sources (33)

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Road map of Midland along I-20, with Odessa to the west and Lubbock to the north, where higher-level trauma centers are
Texas CRS helps people with spinal cord injuries live on their own. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Where do you get spinal cord injury care near Midland?

Midland Fire medics answer emergency calls across the city and Midland County. At the scene, crews place a rigid collar on the neck and move the person on a backboard. TxDOT counted 150 suspected serious injuries in Midland County crashes in 2025.

PlaceWhat the sources say
Midland Memorial HospitalState list: Advanced (Level III) trauma facility
Medical Center Hospital, OdessaState list: Major (Level II) trauma facility
University Medical Center, LubbockState list: Comprehensive (Level I) trauma facility
Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital, 1800 Heritage Blvd., MidlandPhone (432) 520-1600. Inpatient programs include at least three hours of therapy five days a week

What do doctors look for after a spine injury?

A spinal cord injury causes changes in feeling, movement, strength and body functions below the point of injury. Signs include numbness or tingling in the hands and feet and loss of bladder and bowel control.

Damage can grow after the first hours. Bleeding and swelling can lead to secondary damage over time. Roughly a third of people with these injuries need help breathing, for a time or for life. Autonomic dysreflexia is a life-threatening reflex that care teams watch for.

An MRI can show injury to the ligaments that support the spine. In an incomplete injury, the cord can still send some messages. In a complete one, no nerve signals pass below the injury.

What help can a Midland family get beyond the hospital?

The Texas Comprehensive Rehabilitation Services program helps eligible people with traumatic brain or spinal cord injuries function independently. Applicants must be at least 15. Calling puts you on an interest list, so call early.

A doctor who specializes in physical medicine and rehabilitation usually leads the rehab team. Doctors can often predict the likely long-term outcome with reasonable accuracy. Ask for that opinion in writing. It supports a claim for future care.

Who pays for spinal cord injury care and lost income in Midland?

  • Texas limits medical recovery to the amounts paid or owed, not the full hospital list price.
  • Pay you can no longer earn has to be shown after income tax. A national database shows 18 percent of people with these injuries were employed at year 1.
  • If Medicare paid, its conditional payments must be repaid from a settlement.
  • A hospital lien exists only if you were admitted within 72 hours.

If a City of Midland vehicle caused the crash, the city damage cap is $250,000 per person.

How long do you have to file a spinal cord injury claim in Midland?

The deadline to sue is usually two years. Claims against a government unit need notice within six months. For a City of Midland claim the charter says 60 days, in writing, to the mayor and council.

Start gathering records now. Midland Health's Release of Information needs a written request and should answer in 5 working days. Its main line is (432) 221-1111.

Questions

Does the claim cover care I will need years from now?

It can, if a doctor puts the future needs in writing. That is why a rehab doctor's outcome opinion matters.

Can I be hurt more after the first treatment?

Yes. Swelling and bleeding can cause secondary damage over time, so go back if symptoms change.

Do I have to pay Medicare back?

Yes. Medicare conditional payments must be repaid when you receive a settlement or judgment.

Who can help me find rehab in Midland?

Start with the hospital case manager, Encompass Health at (432) 520-1600 and the CRS interest list.

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Sources (33)

  1. Texas DSHS Trauma Facilities, checked 2026-11-09. “MIDLAND MEMORIAL HOSPITAL PROBATIONARY 10/1/2029 TSA - J MIDLAND 79701”
  2. Texas DSHS Trauma Facilities, checked 2026-11-09. “UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER 10/1/2028 B LUBBOCK 79415”
  3. Texas Health and Human Services, checked 2026-11-09. “The Comprehensive Rehabilitation Services program assists eligible people who have a traumatic brain injury (TBI), traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI), or both”
  4. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003, checked 2026-11-08. “not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues”
  5. Texas Health and Human Services, checked 2026-11-09. “When you call CRS, you are added to the interest list.”
  6. Encompass Health, checked 2026-11-09. “1800 Heritage Blvd.”
  7. Encompass Health, checked 2026-11-09. “at least three hours of physical, occupational or speech therapy five days a week”
  8. 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”
  9. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101, checked 2026-11-08. “not later than six months after the day that the incident giving rise to the claim occurred”
  10. City of Midland, About MFD, checked 2026-11-08. “provides fire protection and emergency medical services”
  11. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “emergency personnel will place a rigid collar around the neck and carefully place the person on a backboard”
  12. TxDOT, 2025 Crashes and Injuries by County, checked 2026-11-08. “Midland 44 45 125 150 620 909 473 752 2,763 8,212 186 559 4,211”
  13. Texas DSHS Trauma Facilities, checked 2026-11-09. “MEDICAL CENTER HOSPITAL 2/1/2029 J ODESSA 79761”
  14. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “temporary or permanent changes in feeling, movement, strength, and body functions below the point where the injury happens”
  15. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “Numbness, tingling, or a loss of (or changes in) sensation in hands and feet”
  16. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “Loss of bladder and bowel control”
  17. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “develop over time from bleeding and swelling in the spinal cord and cell death (secondary damage)”
  18. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “About one-third of people with an SCI will need temporary or permanent help with breathing”
  19. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “Autonomic dysreflexia is a life-threatening reflex action”
  20. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “injury to the ligaments that support the cervical spine”
  21. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “the spinal cord is still able to send some messages to or from the brain”
  22. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “there is no nerve communication below the injury site”
  23. Texas Health and Human Services, checked 2026-11-09. “Be at least 15 years of age.”
  24. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “A doctor specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation usually leads the rehabilitation team.”
  25. NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “Doctors are now able to predict with reasonable accuracy the likely long-term outcome of an SCI.”
  26. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 18.091, checked 2026-11-09. “must be presented in the form of a net loss after reduction for income tax payments or unpaid tax liability”
  27. National SCI Statistical Center, checked 2026-11-09. “Since 2015, 18% of persons with tSCI are employed at year 1”
  28. CMS, checked 2026-11-09. “because it must be repaid to Medicare when a beneficiary receives a settlement, judgment, award, or other payment”
  29. 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.”
  30. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. 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”
  31. City of Midland Charter, Sec. 8, checked 2026-11-08. “duly verified within sixty days after the same has been sustained”
  32. Midland Health, Medical Records, checked 2026-11-08. “Release of Information should provide an answer in 5 working days”
  33. Midland Health, Medical Records, checked 2026-11-08. “Main Line: (432) 221-1111”

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