Good Afternoon, I am trying to deal with one of my creditors. This OC is a local hospital. They are in-network provider for my ins plan. My child broke ankle and we took to E.R. My ins paid it's portion but the hospital is trying to get me to pay $101.00 more than my co-insurance amt and all that I am supposed to pay on it. So my amt is $299.00. The hospital wants $400 which is the total of my co-ins and their agreed upon, in their contract write off. So they turned me over to a collection acct for the full $400. I'v been calling their billing dept for over a year about this and last year they finally agreed that I only owe the $299. So I told this billing clerk in the hospital in-house billing dept to notify the CA and CRA that they amount being reported is wrong. She said she couldn't do that. She did however, pull the account out of Collections (NC0) on 12-27-03 and sent it to ATTENTION LLC the very same day, for $400.00. Then I have acct's on CR that are for the full amt of the bills but the provider never billed ins. That is part of their contract, they have to bill for me. They didn't. Instead, they sent me to collections. The hospital has taken 2 accts and turned them over to 2 sep CA. So their are double accts listed on CR. Also, wrong amts. Also, wrong dates. On top of everything, the hospital put themselves on my CR for the $400 acct even though they turned it over to 2 sep CA. Now, I do have some back and forth e-mails that I had with the woman in charge of the billing dept. She works in the Adm. dept. She has agreed in one of her e-mails to me that yes, I know you don't owe the $400, only $299 which we expect pmt on. Only in her dreams. I also have an e-mail sent the same day as the others in which I ask her why they are continuing to allow incorrect information to stay on my CR. Especially since she was now fully aware of it. That was 3 weeks ago and it's still incorrectly reporting. Sorry this is so long. Jane P.S. One more thing. Doesn't a CA have to delete all references to an acct in collections if the OC takes it back from the CA?
Why haven't you paid the 299? This is probsbly where and why they're hanging your butt. *Re the PS YES
I would not pay anything IMO, as the amounts will change and they will have a different amount for you to pay. I would get in contact with the supervisor and get an amount I am responsible for in writing. I would pay it only after they agreed to pull the accounts out of collections. Or validate, since hospitals keep such trashy records. However, I found if you give them lots of attention, they keep messing with you. I understand you want to do the right thing, but people who totally ignore the bills are not even bothered, which I don't agree with either. I would tell the supervisor, let's resolve this as I am trying to do the right thing.
Re: Re: Questions about my next bat Hello, I haven't paid because I DESPISE AND HATE this hospital. I have very valid reasons for hating them. Besides, I don't pay anything until my EOB arrives since that's the true amount I have to pay. The hospital has always maintained I owe the $400 even though they also have the EOB. They sent it to collections for that amt and try telling a CA that you only owe x amt, not what they claim. Tell the CA you are only going to pay what you are legally contracted to pay and not a penny more. Tell them you expect them to report correctly to the CRA that your debt is paid in full. They will laugh you right off the phone. I don't deal with CA's. Once the OC turns me over then I just wait out the 7 years. I think most creditors could care less about medical debts on your credit. Maybe if you are going for a house, they would want you to pay all outstanding amts on your credit to avoid leins on the house but credit card companies, etc do not care if you owe some hospital money. Especially the little bit I owe. Thank you for your answers. I appreciate all the answers I get. Jane
Re: Re: Questions about my next bat I am trying to do the right thing here. But my motives are selfish. I'm trying to do the right thing for my family by cleaning up my credit so I can provide everything I want to for them. I have worked soooooo hard to not get anything large or important on my credit for the last 6 years. This year my Chap 7 falls off, next year a paid tax lein, a chap 13 BK (my last) falls off and 2 judgements fall off. That is the last of my really big things. Almost everything else, except maybe 2 utility bills, have been from the same hospital and it's various partners. Personally, I think these hospitals charge way too much to begin with. Really, $7.00 for an asprin. Give me a break. The supervisor here is useless. I have like 7 e-mails from her agreeing I only owe 299, not 400 but doing nothing to fix their mistake. It took her 3 weeks to contact me after I called like 5 times and only when I called and left the message that if I didn't hear from her by end of business day I would be filing suit the next day in Court. She e-mailed me within 2 hours of that call I made. So they know they are doing wrong. And from now on, all my letters and such re; all of this will be sent to this supervisor but CC'd to the CEO and the Board of Directors. And if they have shareholders, I'll send letters to them too. Thank you, Jane
lbrown: Until the amount is corrected, it is better to *NOT* pay a penny. If you pay, they can try to use the payment as an admission that you owe the full amount. And, in most cases they have fine print disclaimers, that they will automatically assign any payments to the oldest balance first, irregardless as to whether that oldest balance is your responsibility or not. I would stop e-mailing, yes, it may be admissible, but its not as concrete as a signed, sealed and delivered letter on their own companies letterhead. If you would have a letter, and not just an e-mail admitting to the amount only being $299, you could use that to lynch both the CA's and the OC for violating the FCRA.
lbrown: Until the amount is corrected, it is better to *NOT* pay a penny. If you pay, they can try to use the payment as an admission that you owe the full amount. And, in most cases they have fine print disclaimers, that they will automatically assign any payments to the oldest balance first, irregardless as to whether that oldest balance is your responsibility or not. I would stop e-mailing, yes, it may be admissible, but its not as concrete as a signed, sealed and delivered letter on their own companies letterhead. If you would have a letter, and not just an e-mail admitting to the amount only being $299, you could use that to lynch both the CA's and the OC for violating the FCRA.
Since the hospital, thru their billing department, knows that their bill is incorrect, deal directly with the hospital. The CA could care less, and even if the account had been "sold" to the CA, the hospital would be negligent to do so if they know it is incorrect. Send them a letter, to the billing department manager, CRRR, summarizing that their employee has confirmed that their bill contains a large error, that in particular they are apparently trying to collect on amounts disallowed under their contract with your insurance company, that you need a correct and accurate bill to pay off this account, outlining how long you have been trying to get this straightened out, and that their failure to provide this bill is delaying their payment. Also note that they are also liable for all damage arising from their negligent forwarding of this erroneous bill to an outside collector. Note at the bottom "CC: <xxx insurance company>", or whoever is your company. Include a copy of the clearest e-mail from their employee that indicates the amount of the error. Send a letter to your insurance company explaining the problem, and asking them to enforce their contract with the hospital, to make sure that your co-pay to the hospital is in accordance with your insurance plan. Include a copy of what you sent to the hospital. What you want to establish is that there is an error, that they know there is an error, that this error is a breach of contract on their part, and that they have a responsibility to fix it to get paid. If problems continue, your next point of contact at the hospital will be their head administrator, with your full paper trail. Managers do not want to look bad to their own managers when their employees screw up. It is their job to make sure it does not become a bigger problem, and quickly. In addition, by establishing that the problem, including your delay in payment, is due to their error, you provide the basis both for their pulling the account back from the CA, and for removal of all damaging CR information. They also know that everything you have sent them, including the e-mails, would show up if anything went to court.
Re: Re: Questions about my next bat **Yep, I'm working on full paper trail.. I so want to nail these mindless morans. I do think I will try to e-mail CE0, and follow up with letters CRRR.** Thank you, Jane
Re: Re: Questions about my next bat Is this a group policy thru your employer? If so, have you had your HR department contact your insurance company? They have an interest in next year's contract. If your insurance company is not responsive, have you filed a complaint with your state's Insurance Commisioner? As long as the messy collection problem is contained and being handled by one or another collection agency, out of sight, as far as the billing supervisor is concerned, there is no problem. If a minor $100 billing disagreement (actually they even appear to agree on the correct amount, at least verbally) has the potential to become visible to outsiders, including those they may have to negotiate future contracts with, it starts looking different. Is part of this bill for the hospital, and part specifically for physician services? If a specific physician's services are being overbilled, contact him directly. No doubt, he has better things to do than mess with billing problems, but if it's in error and the billing department can't or won't fix it, it's still his problem.
Re: Re: Re: Questions about my next ** The most I owe is $770 and the least I owe is $7.00. I have been sent to collections for each of them, including the $7.00 bill. The $771 bill is hospital and the rest are either other DOS for hospital or other providers connected with the DOS. I have bills from providers in which they either didn't bill my ins at all but rather sent me off to collections. This is another contract violation since the terms of my ins says that the provider "must" bill for me and if they don't bill ins within 150 days they are SOL and CANNOT come after me even for anything. Nada, zip. When I called the provider yesterday about these unbilled bills that are with CA, they couldn't find these accounts at all. Usually when they send to CA they at least retain some info about it. So how will the CA be able to do full validation if the OC cannot locate in system? I feel I'm in the middle of the biggest comedy of errors.** Thank you, Jane
Re: Re: Re: Questions about my next 1*They sent it to collections for that amt. and try telling a CA that you only owe x amt, not what they claim. Tell the CA you are only going to pay what you are legally contracted to pay and not a penny more. 2*Tell them you expect them to report correctly to the CRA that your debt is paid in full. They will laugh you right off the phone. 3*I don't deal with CA's. 4*Once the OC turns me over then I just wait out the 7 years. 5*I think most creditors could care less about medical debts on your credit. Jane =================== 1*That's why you don't try to tell them anything.You send them the Validation Letter instead. 2*That's why you stay off the phone with them. 3*If they own the debt you don't have much other choice. 4*And pay hundreds to thousand in over charges for interest and insurance over that 7 years. 5*But FICO does and low fico scores cost you jacked loan and insurance rates.
Re: Re: Re: Questions about my next Lbrown: Until the amount is corrected, it is better to *NOT* pay a penny. If you pay, they can try to use the payment as an admission that you owe the full amount. jam237 =============== In some disputes you don't have to pay the amount in dispute but you are required to pay any amount not in dispute. Credit cards work this way. Does paying the anount not in dispute in this case give the Credit Card the right to use the payment as an admission that one owes the entire amount. If you don't pay the amount not in dispute you get hit with late charges and a jacked intrest rate. ><- <>- ><- <> ~~~ ><- <>- ><- <> ><- <>- ><- <> ~~~ ><- <>- ><- <>
Re: Re: Re: Questions about my next But this is not a credit card account, it's a MEDICAL ACCOUNT. And if the posters medical provider is like the providers around here, the chances are their policy is any payments go to the first balance on the account, irregardless of whether that balance is their responsibility or the insurance companies, or is in dispute. And if they apply the payment to the disputed balance, then they can turn around and say that by paying on that balance, you knew that it was correct, and they can try to hold you responsible for the entire balance, including the part that they have admitted was a billing error. Read the fine print for your specific provider's payment posting policy, it should be on the invoice from them.
