I sent DV w/ a credit disclosure form to a CA on a medical account. I asked that the form be returned, they provide contract creating the debt amount they say I owe, a complete statement of this account and proof that they are certified and bonded to collect on a debt in my state of residence. They have replied TWICE w/ my original cover letter, no disclosure form, a consent to treat...which is the only documentation with my signature and today I received a copy of a check where I had made a payment to them. What do I do now???? This is not debt validation in my eyes, but I wanted the opinion of this board. Any suggestions on what to do?
A consent to treat, and a payment check, may document that a debt is yours, but it does not show what is owed, and how that was determined. It would appear the key documentation you are missing is an accounting for what they claim is owed, showing the original balance, and all payments made and any fees added, supported by a copy of the original bill if you don't have it. Was the check to the CA, or to the original provider? Was insurance involved, and if so was a claim submitted and paid? Do you have an EOB? Is the CA collecting for the original provider, or did they buy the debt? Are CAs required to be bonded in your state, or is this not relevant?
Is the consent to treat validation? I take it that you are saying that it is. I feel the clause that makes it valid is kind of shaky. this is the paragraph...what do you think? This is it.... I authorize my insurance company (of which I had none at the time) to forward to _______________ all benefits I am entitled for mediacl expense with regard to the services above reported. I understand I am financially responsible to _______________ for charges not covered by this authorization. All proceeds I receive from my insurance company, along with co-payments and deductibles required by my plan, will be paid promptly to the center. Again, no I had no insurance, and you are correct in the following: It would appear the key documentation you are missing is an accounting for what they claim is owed, showing the original balance, and all payments made and any fees added, supported by a copy of the original bill if you don't have it. I have no bill w/ what the balance due is for. I don't believe I ever eceived one. The check was to the CA, but is for the year 2002. I don't know if they purchased the debt or if they are collecting for the provider...they won't say. That question was in the disclosure. Being bonded...well I am not sure. the debt was created in Ohio, but I now live in AZ. I REALLY appreciate your input. Thanks! Reatha
Oh, and EOB??? I don't know what that is..... I assume explanation of balance maybe???? Could you clarify? Thank you!!
Explanation of Benefits. If you had had insurance, and if a claim had been submitted, your insurance company would have sent you an EOB, with the amount billed, any adjustments, the amount they paid, and any amount you were responsible. Not applicable if you didn't have insurance coverage, but worth checking if you did, since this is often where you catch provider billing errors.
thank you for the EOB clarification. Could you by chance please evaluate the post before it?? I am not sure what to do with this CA. Thanks a zillion.
You don't have an original bill. Regardless of a patient consent or patient responsibility form, or even that they got you to pay something in the past, you don't know the amount is accurate, or even from the provider they claim, or even your debt. Without that bill, you can't even know what your are paying on, or if a later CA tried to collect, whether they were collecting on a bill you would have already paid. You want the original bill, showing the services provided and the charges for those services. You also want a statement showing any payments made, either to the medical provider, or thru any CAs. The fact that they sent you a copy of the signed consent to treat indicates they apparently have access to the records from the original creditor. If they are collecting for the original creditor, or they bought the account, they should be able to obtain a copy of the bill from the original creditor and send it to you. That is what requesting validation is.
There can be more than one reason why a CA might avoid sending you validation, other than lazyness, or a belief in their own persuasiveness. They might have added fees not allowed under the original contract, which might be clear if you had a copy of the bill. There might be erroneous charges on the bill, and whether or not they know or care, sending you a copy will likely only decrease what you owe, not increase it. They might be unable to contact the original provider, if for instance, they are out of business or have changed ownership. In some cases, there have been class action settlements with some medical providers for systematic overcharging. (Search on "Tenet".)
What *FORM* did you request that they complete? 99.44% of the time, if its a form included with a form letter which you found online, it's not required for validation. Validation is for two (well three) purposes. (a) verifying that they are attempting to collect from the right consumer. (b) verifying that the amount, character, and legal status of the debt is correct and accurate; and upon the consumer's request that they provide to you the name, and address of the alleged original creditor. That is it. That's about all that I agree with from the enemy camp on. You can ask for anything you want, as long as that information goes to resolving the above information.
