Question about hospital bill in collections

Anonymous · ‎12-01-2021

I had a baby 7 months ago and have been struggling with getting the final bill from the hospital. In the last month while trying to get the finale of the hospital bill, my only other bill which was for the anesthesiologist got sent to collections. I contacted the original office after I received the letter today and they say they no longer own this debt and i cannot pay them for it and that I have to go through collections.

I have read there is 180 day period from the time that the bill goes into collections that I can pay it and prevent it from being reported to the 3 agencies. I am making this post to see if this is true and if I should go ahead and pay the collection agency and have this debt not affect me. If so, should I get anything in writing or will I be fine just paying them.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Remedios · ‎12-01-2021

It's a little trickier than that.

It's 180 days from the time account became delinquent.

So that's 180 days past the due date on your first statement.

Anonymous · ‎12-01-2021

Is it that way for medical collections? Most of the things I read say 180 days for medical bills once they reach collections but it may be worded bad.

The account is not on my credit report as of right now. What is the best way I can pay this and prevent it from reaching the report?

FinStar · ‎12-01-2021

@Anonymous wrote:
Is it that way for medical collections? Most of the things I read say 180 days for medical bills once they reach collections but it may be worded bad.

The account is not on my credit report as of right now. What is the best way I can pay this and prevent it from reaching the report?

Is the collection agency internal or external? Did they provide a contact or number to reach out to them or have you received any correspondence from the collection agency?

Remedios · ‎12-01-2021

@Anonymous wrote:
Is it that way for medical collections? Most of the things I read say 180 days for medical bills once they reach collections but it may be worded bad.

The account is not on my credit report as of right now. What is the best way I can pay this and prevent it from reaching the report?

Unfortunately, it's 180 days from when account became delinquent.

It's harder to determine exact date since most medical statements are due upon receipt, so 2 weeks to 30 days would be considered "reasonable"

This isn't legally mandated, these 180 days were agreed upon by three major CRAs to allow insurance processing to be completed.

It's the CRA that chooses not to insert reporting during that time, so you might want to hurry up as clock is ticking

If the account is with CA and you can pay it, call them and ask them not to report but you will be required to pay on the spot.

Do not pay hospital/provider before calling CA since if it's too late to recall collection, it will remain on your report, albeit showing $0.00 due.

FireMedic1 · ‎12-03-2021

Remember the anesthesiologist is usually with a doctors group and not affiliated with hospital billing. Two separate bills. Kinda like the ER. You get a ER hospital bill and the ER MD Group bill. Like the boss said above me. Jump on it soon.

BK Free Aug25

SoCalGardener · ‎12-03-2021

@Anonymous wrote:
I had a baby 7 months ago and have been struggling with getting the final bill from the hospital. In the last month while trying to get the finale of the hospital bill, my only other bill which was for the anesthesiologist got sent to collections. I contacted the original office after I received the letter today and they say they no longer own this debt and i cannot pay them for it and that I have to go through collections.

I have read there is 180 day period from the time that the bill goes into collections that I can pay it and prevent it from being reported to the 3 agencies. I am making this post to see if this is true and if I should go ahead and pay the collection agency and have this debt not affect me. If so, should I get anything in writing or will I be fine just paying them.

Although I suggest deferring to the other people who've posted, I want to tell you about my experience. Please note that my memory is very, very fuzzy (I was extremely ill at the time), so I can't provide specifics like internal/external or how many days, etc. However, while I was in the hospital for six months--with no one opening my mail--tons of bills poured in, and became past due. After I got home, and was well enough to participate a little, we went through all the bills and started making phone calls. Note that by this time, I'm as sure as I can be that some of them were more than 180 days old.

We called every creditor--all collection agencies as I recall--and explained what had happened, i.e., that I was STILL in the hospital when their bills came in, and had no knowledge of them until now. We offered to pay in full immediately *if* they would remove the derogatory marks on my credit reports in exchange. They all agreed. We requested a WRITTEN statement from each of them acknowledging our agreement, THEN we paid each bill in full. Every single one was removed from my reports. I realize my circumstances were unusual, and they were easily documented--if any of them had asked for proof that I was in the hospital that entire time, we could've easily produced it. We explained to each one that I have stellar credit, would never normally just ignore a bill, and didn't want my credit damaged due to circumstances beyond my control. They were so nice! And helpful.

Now, I don't know why your bill for the anesthesiologist went to collections, but if you have an honest, credible reason, my method is worth a try. I came through this six-figure fiasco unscathed as far as credit scores go.