There’s legal precedent to get damages when they deny maintenance and cure

In Atlantic Sounding Company v. Edgar L. Townsend (2009), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an injured seaman is entitled to receive punitive damages when the employer willfully fails to pay maintenance and cure.  In that case, Townsend, a seaman working aboard a tug, fell onto the deck and hurt his shoulder and arm. Atlantic Sounding, the vessel owner, refused to pay maintenance by arguing that seamen can recover only the damages cited in the Jones Act. The high court disagreed, stating that punitive damages had long been available for “wanton, willful, or outrageous conduct.”