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I went to the ER a while back and started to get a bunch of bills from different places. I've been ignoring the letters for six months because they keep coming from the doctor, the ER, then one from the hospital, then one from the radiologist and on and on for ridiculous amounts.
The one from the radiologist got sent to collections and the letter from the collections agency says I owe $500, but the initial letter for the radiologist said it was about $1000.
I'm growing increasingly confused because I never signed a contract saying what the visit would cost. The radiologist initially said $1000 in their bill, what's to say I pay 500 and I don't get another bill from them next week saying I owe an additional $2000 for the assistant to the radiologist or something? Health care in the US is the biggest legally sanctioned scam that's probably ever existed. What are the different ways you all have dealt with this type of thing?
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Request a proof of debt. You don't have to accept the debt to request further proof. The FDCPA requires them to provide that if you request it. That's a federal law.
Thanks for the reply. Do you know if there is a standardized form or template for such a request?
https://www.thebalancemoney.com/sample-debt-validation-letter-for-debt-collectors-960597#:~:text=Debt%20Validation%20Letter%20Example&text=I%20am%20requesting%20that%20you,pay%20the%20current%20amount%20owed. Here's a quick sample I found!
Awesome! Thank you
It says I had to write the validation request within 30 days. I think I'm well beyond that
You can still ask for it, the response just becomes optional if it's been longer than 30 days since they contacted you.
If your bills are coming from the debt collector, you likely can only deal with them now and not the hospital.
One thing you have to realize whether you think healthcare is a scam or not, is that you need to reply to the bills. Perfectly legal to bill you for services. And most healthcare facilities have you sign a "responsible party" form before providing services so you probably signed that but I would check with them just to be sure.
Request the debt validation letter anyway. It can't hurt at this point. However you lost the best opportunity to negotiate a settlement when the debt was sent to the debt collector. Hospitals are usually very acceptable of patients ability to pay and often will settle for much less than a debt collector. I settled two hospital bills for just over half of what I was billed for.
Debt collectors are scum and will hound you forever to collect. After a year or so, they will likely sue you to get a judgment. That's why hospitals sell bad debt to these guys. They don't want to sue a patient and lose "goodwill" in the community so they sell the debt for pennies on the dollar.
You can still negotiate with the debt collector, it just won't be easy and they likely won't settle for less than 75-80% of the debt.
What confused me was that I kept getting different bills. The hospital told me that if I enter a payment plan for $100 a month it will cover all the bills associated with the service because all of the providers are employed by the hospital umbrella. I entered a payment plan then started getting these letters.
Did you ever make a payment?
To the hospital yes. They set up a payment plan and said this covers all costs associated with the visit. Then I started getting letters from a radiologist saying I owe $1,000. Now I'm getting letters from collections saying I owe $500 for a radiologist.
When was your last payment? When is the last time you called the hospital?
Call the department that set up the plan and ask how it's possible for your balance to be turned over for collections when you had a payment plan in place.
Each state has a state bar lawyer referral service. Google your state followed by state bar lawyer referral service and they usually give discounted or low cost legal consults. There are also usually reduced cost legal aid for low income individuals.
Thanks. I don't think I will qualify. I don't make a lot, but I'm just above the threshold for most free stuff. Student loans and credit card debt eat up just about all I have. The crazy part is I work for a law/cpa firm as admin, but my firm is across the state line from where I live and everyone I work for is licensed in the other state and can't represent me in my home state.
The state or county bar low cost 30 min consult isn’t dependent on income. I’ve seen from $25 - $50 for a 30 min initial consult. The lawyers are vetted and in good standing at least in Virginia. What is your state? The free legal aid is separate from this and most people don’t qualify but sometimes on their websites they give brief legal advice and any forms needed. Also I was quoted around $1500 for a simple debt collection case in a high cost of living area. I’ve seen around $300 - $600 an hour for a legal consult and this information alone can tell you enough to know whether or not it’s worth fighting it or negotiating it.
Hospital finance people probably didn't realize parts had already been sourced out , like Radiology and pathology aren't handled by the hospital they could work at the hospital but be employed by a local clinic possibly the facility your PCP is employed. I get calls daily from RBI radiology bill for a $ 27 dolar bill and a 17 dollar pathology bill I just found out about is in collections as well but it can definitely get confusing the radiology bill you have may have started at $1000 but the adjusted down to $500 the same way they overcharge insurance and adjust it down normally
That makes sense. I'm going to try to call to figure this out today