r/HealthInsurance • u/fayfay86 • 1d ago
Claims/Providers Can I ignore this debt? Drowning in Medical Debt.
Hi -
I am 9 months pregnant and have had my life wrecked by surprise medical debt incurred last year. I honestly did not realize how shitty my insurance was and moved a lot - but long story short, i've discovered $10k in debt that has found me via collections.
i decided to go through my billing history and saw that a hospital ER visit / outstanding charges from April 2024 (approx $3k) were labeled as "Terminal Bad Debt - Write Off - April 2025". I moved a lot so might be missing mail but should I call the hospital to see if it's with a collections agency or should I wait until it goes on my credit or should I assume it's gone forever? I haven't gotten mail from one but the other outstanding bills from another hospital caught me off guard until they showed up on my creidt. just really scared and stressed.
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u/SupermarketSad7504 1d ago
We're these deductibles and coinsurance or just you didn't have insurance ? Maybe call them and explain and set up payment plan.
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u/fayfay86 1d ago
Deductibles. THey wrote it off on their end so I assume its already with collections. Should I call them and see which collector has it?
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u/No-Produce-6720 1d ago
OP, see my previous comment. You can check with the hospital, but they won't be able to give you much information. If they use more than one collection agency, they can probably give you correct contact info, but beyond that, legally, they can't do much for you, as they no longer own your account from that specific date of service.
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u/sacredlunch888 1d ago
I know but I need to know which collections agency has it.
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u/No-Produce-6720 1d ago
Yep, I agree, but just be aware that they may not have that information, especially if they use more than one agency. If they don't know specifically where it is, see if they can at least tell you the agencies they use. Then you could call around until you find it.
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u/sacredlunch888 1d ago
That’s crazy. What if they don’t know? I just have to wait til it hits my freaking credit???
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u/No-Produce-6720 1d ago
So before they can send you to an outside collection agency, they have to make at least three attempts to collect payment themselves, and you have to receive a final notice, as well. Honestly, they may not even be able to see and tell you the dates of those statements. Once it's written off to an outside agency, it's gone. It's possible that they would be able to see you were treated in that particular date of service, but that's it.
If you're dealing with a smaller hospital system, they'll likely be able to tell you where it was sent, assuming they don't use multiple agencies. If you're in a larger system, it's more likely that they use more than one place.
You also have the option of running your credit report. If it's hit there, you should be able to get agency information off that report.
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u/SupermarketSad7504 1d ago
If they wrote it off it's not with collections. Call the hospital
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u/No-Produce-6720 1d ago
Incorrect. The charge was written off because it was sent to outside collection. The hospital no longer owns the account. The collection agency does, so it has to be removed from the hospital. It was written off specifically because it went to collection.
The hospital would no longer be able to speak to the fee. They cannot make any payment arrangements with it, and they cannot collect any money on it, even if OP were to pay it in full on the spot.
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u/SupermarketSad7504 1d ago
I think it depends on the hospital. My local hospital we just got a bill 4 years after they wrote something off. Because we went back to that ER. It supposedly went to collection and returned to the hospital as uncollectable. We dont recall those bills. It was covid so who knows.
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u/Mysterious-Art8838 1d ago
Why would you get a bill for something they wrote off?
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u/No-Produce-6720 1d ago
You wouldn't. Communication about the charge would come from the collection agency, not the hospital.
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u/SupermarketSad7504 1d ago
Maybe not yours but ours reactivated
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u/Mysterious-Art8838 1d ago
I know that some hospitals don’t charge it off they just give it to collections and they can claw it back if there are signs of life.
Why do you think it was written off at one point?
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u/SupermarketSad7504 1d ago
When hubby went back to the hospital for his current ER visit, they stored everything he's ever had in 1 MyChart. The old write off saw the new event and reactivated and we got the current bills for coinsurance and the old one as well.
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u/Low-Amphibian7798 1d ago
You definitely shouldn’t ignore it, even if it says Terminal Bad Debt Write Off, because hospitals sometimes sell these debts to collections later. The safest move is to call the hospital’s billing department to confirm whether it has been sent to collections or is truly written off. If it hasn’t gone to collections yet, get any agreements in writing and keep careful records in case it resurfaces. Staying on top of it now will prevent surprises on your credit report and reduce stress later, especially while you’re about to have a baby.
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u/sacredlunch888 1d ago
There’s also an ambulance ride I took over a year ago I am totally unable to track down. Hospital says they have no record of it. City EMS has no record. Should I expect this to show up in collections too? I’m so paranoid now since I moved and missed all these bills, but this one I have absolutely no way to track down.
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u/DowntownSalt2758 1d ago
Have you pulled your credit reports to see if it’s reported there? We had some bills go to collections from a workers comp claim I was still able to work with the hospital to get it cleared (submitted to workers comp) even though it went to collections over a year ago. Depends on hospital and claims company apparently.
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u/sacredlunch888 1d ago
Shocked this hospital actually sent to a contracted collections agency and then when they couldn’t find me, the hospital just pulled it back. It sits with them now and won’t go to collections, just written off as bad debt.
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u/DowntownSalt2758 1d ago
Sounds very lucky! Does that mean they won’t report it to credit agencies? If they won’t report it that’s amazing!
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u/sacredlunch888 1d ago
Yes! I just had another hospital sell it to a third party who reported it to credit agencies so I expected that from them too but guess all are different. They reassured me they won’t report it!
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u/Marsinnyc 1d ago
I’m so sorry this is happening to you right now!
First, I will say try not to stress about it right now and focus on your pregnancy.
If this was sent to collections in April, chances are they would have reached out to you by now via phone or email, and it would have been listed as a collection on your credit report.
If they reach out, I would recommend you request a verification of the debt. You would be surprised how many times creditors fail to do their due diligence when sending something to collections and attach debt to the wrong person or in higher amounts than what is actually owed. If this is the case, the collection agency may stop the collection altogether (this has happened to me).
Lastly, collection agencies are very open to setting up payment plans or settlements, as they purchase the debt for lower amounts than they wish to collect. So don’t be afraid to talk and negotiate with them if necessary, and tell them what is—and isn’t—affordable for you.
Best of luck with this debt and with your pregnancy!
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u/fayfay86 1d ago
I can't focus on the pregnancy. I am so immensely stressed about all this new debt and being chased by collections and I am legit hardly eating or sleeping.
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u/Marsinnyc 1d ago
I completely understand! Please take comfort in the fact that they can’t do anything besides call and send letters (if they have your address). I recommend talking with your doctor about how this is affecting you, they may be able to connect you with resources!
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u/sacredlunch888 1d ago
They can destroy my credit.
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u/Marsinnyc 1d ago
Not necessarily. Depending on the state the debt may not even be reported to the credit bureaus. Also, medical collections are given far less weight than say, a credit card collection.
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u/MessageIll1573 1d ago
Everything is negotiable. Definitely ask for a payment plan.
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u/fayfay86 1d ago
So they def sent it to collections? I should call the hospital and ask who they sent it to?
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u/DowntownSalt2758 1d ago
Yes, call the hospital and see what info they have. If it’s sent to collections, they should know who it went to. Be careful talking to any collection agency as they can be very aggressive. I block my phone number before I call them. If the hospital can still work with you (which is better than dealing with a collection agency), negotiate a lower amount (e.g. I see no way we can pay $10,000, can we settle this for usually 2000 and a payment plan?). They are happy to take a small amount over no payment. If you can setup a plan even with a small payment per month, it can take out of collections. If you have to deal with a collections agency, they buy debt at pennies on the dollar so will often negotiate way down but you’ll have to fight for it. Give them no information but a sob story that you can’t pay it and go from there.
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u/DinnerWhole7279 11h ago
Were your claims denied? Or they just didn't cover your procedures you had with your hospital/provider?
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