Three years is the outside deadline to file most Vermont injury claims, but the urgent reality is this: if the ER or your OB told you to get fetal monitoring, the insurance company will look at that instruction as evidence the crash may have affected the pregnancy while still trying to argue the care was "precautionary" or unrelated.

Yes, fetal monitoring should be covered if it was medically necessary after the crash. But which insurance pays first matters.

If you went to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital or your OB sent you for monitoring because of abdominal pain, decreased movement, contractions, bleeding, or trauma from a pothole or collision, that care is part of your injury-related medical treatment. The at-fault driver's insurer usually does not pay the hospital directly as bills come in. That insurer typically pays later through a settlement or judgment.

The bills usually go first to:

• Your health insurance, including Vermont Medicaid/Dr. Dynosaur if you have it
• Any MedPay coverage on your auto policy, if you bought it
• In some cases, the hospital may bill you while liability is still being investigated

Do not skip follow-up because the insurer says it sounds minor. Gaps in treatment are exactly what adjusters use to say you and the baby were fine. If your doctor ordered repeat monitoring, ultrasound, or OB follow-up, keep going and keep every discharge note, fetal tracing record, and bill.

If the insurer says your symptoms were from a pre-existing pregnancy issue, timing matters. Tell providers exactly when the crash happened, where the seat belt hit, whether airbags deployed, and when pain or reduced fetal movement started.

If a health plan or auto insurer wrongly denies payment, complaints in Vermont go through the Department of Financial Regulation. If the road condition itself caused the wreck, save photos of the frost heaves or potholes before they're patched.