Backstory:

Was unemployed (well, waitressing looking for work) and paying out of pocket for health insurance that would limit how much I would pay if something major happened to me. $2,500 deductible policy. Well, in September I knocked out a tooth and had to get an emergency root canal and crown (without dental insurance) to the tune of about $3k. 4 weeks after that I had to go to the hospital twice for kidney stones to the tune of about $3,500 (after paying the deductible amount plus all of the additional follow ups and prescriptions).

Well, it was a lot of costs while only waiting tables. I've been paying each month on the medical bills to keep them from going to collections.

Well, just got a notification from a collection agency for a small amount ($99) which I actually mailed a payment to them last week for it.

Question - Do medical companies have the right to send it to collections if I'm making a payment on the account?

1/28/2011 7:02:57 PM

did you attempt to work out a payment plan with the hospital, or were you just sending them small payments without discussing this with somebody? If you didn't have something worked out with them, it's only logical for them to send it off to collections.

1/28/2011 7:08:09 PM

i guess i had just understood that as long as you were paying on the account (like a credit card for instance) that they couldn't send it.

guess i better take care of the other ones....

1/28/2011 7:13:50 PM

you can usually work out a payment plan with them if you let them know that you want to pay it off but you don't have enough money to cover the total costs. Sometimes they'll even lower the medical costs if they realize you are in financial difficulty. Just go ahead and call them.

I don't know if you can do anything about the debt that's already been sent to collections. Usually once they do that, there's no turning back.

1/28/2011 7:36:13 PM

Yea, I'll call them first thing on Monday morning. The funny thing is, they deposited the payment that I made on the bill after they sent this to collections....

1/28/2011 7:44:37 PM

Medical bills will fall off your credit score quickly once paid. I'd give em a call, but also wouldn't sweat it too much.

1/28/2011 8:53:21 PM

thanks

i've made a list of the ones that i need to call on monday morning to try to get sorted out. and there are a few where i have multiple bills from the same place, so hopefully they can combine them so i'm dealing with less paperwork!

1/28/2011 8:55:19 PM

Quote :

"Question - Do medical companies have the right to send it to collections if I'm making a payment on the account? "

Just like any other business they have a right to send any unpaid bill to collections, but like others have said just give them a call. Most people will work with those making an effort.

The total amount you should have had to pay would have been 2500 I would think.

1/28/2011 11:07:22 PM

after we had the baby, we had a few bills from some of the doctors

i called each doctor and explained that the total was a bit much for me to pull out of pocket

most were fine with payments, but 2 started being tuff and shit when i said i couldnt pay the full amount

long story short, when we got our tax return, the nice ones got paid, the rude ones are still getting $15/month

they keep sending letters demanding payment in full, but so far, no interest, and no collections

1/28/2011 11:55:15 PM

which is the best site to check your credit report?

1/29/2011 10:51:45 AM

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

1/29/2011 1:55:14 PM

Make sure you negotiate, especially with the Hospital, since at least something is in collections already.

I've had two $5000ish hospital stays in the last three years.. both times I called them up and they knocked them immediately down to $3000 with reasonable payments, but then I asked "What if I can somehow scrounge up the cash to pay today?" The women on the phone went to talk to her supervisor, came back and said $1200, and I broke out my debit card and paid it off right then. If you don't have the money to do that, maybe you could borrow some from a friend or family member?

Edit:
As to the multiple bills from the same place - it's doubtful. I assume this is stuff like "radiology" from a specific Doctor, "Anesthesia" from another Doctor, etc. Most of the time the Hospital and the Doctors maintain these differences for very good reasons.

[Edited on January 29, 2011 at 2:00 PM. Reason : .]

1/29/2011 1:57:36 PM