Principle of Maintenance and Cure

Seamen who are injured or become ill at sea are entitled to money from their employer for living expenses, lost wages and medical care until they’re fit for duty again. These payments -- called maintenance and cure under maritime law -- are among the special protections afforded seamen.

The attorneys at Parker Waichman Alonso LLP understand how hard and dangerous work at sea can be. If you’re injured, you deserve time to recover, free of the anxiety and worries about money and medical bills. The employer has a duty to provide injured seaman maintenance and cure—essentially room and board plus medical care—while they recover. All too often, however, the employer will refuse to pay what they owe or delay sending the payments, causing financial hardship for the injured seaman and his family.

If this has happened to you, the lawyers at Parker Waichman Alonso LLP can help. We have experience helping injured maritime workers obtain the compensation to which they’re entitled. We handle maritime law and Jones Act claims from port cities along the U.S. Eastern Seaboard, including  New York, Philadelphia, Wilmington DE, Baltimore, Norfolk, Charleston, Savannah, Jacksonville FL, Fort Lauderdale FL and Miami. Please fill out our online form or call 1-800-LAW-INFO (1-800-529-4636) for a free consultation about your case.

Employers are obligated to pay maintenance and cure no matter who was at fault. Those payments continue until you are fit for duty or you have reached your maximum medical improvement.

Maintenance is the financial equivalent of room and board that a seaman would normally have at sea. Injured seamen are entitled to receive this as long as they are under medical care. The employer must pay an amount that allows a seaman to live on shore in the same manner he or she would live on a ship or other vessel.

Cure is the basic right to medical care while a seaman is in the employ of a ship. The seaman is entitled to this if they suffered an injury while on shore, as long as they are in service of a ship at the time.

Maintenance and cure are separate from any legal claims of unseaworthiness or negligence that may be brought against a ship owner or employer under the Jones Act.

The laws and regulations that govern maintenance and cure are complex. To get the best legal outcome, you need an attorney who knows admiralty laws. The attorneys at Parker Waichman Alonso LLP have successfully helped maritime injury victims for more than 20 years. Our goal is to get your health and finances back on track. Please fill out our online form or call 1-800-LAW-INFO (1-800-529-4636) for help with your case.