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How do I collect payment for medical bills?

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sherraechas

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Ohio
When my ex and I were divorced, I was on the medical card. The judge ordered him to pay 76% of the outstanding medical and dental bills. I have since got a full time job with medical and dental benefits which costs me $150 a month. The outstanding medical and dental bills for last year were $1500 for his share. He refuses to pay. How do I collect? Thanks......
 


MrsK

Senior Member
What is the name of your state? Ohio
When my ex and I were divorced, I was on the medical card. The judge ordered him to pay 76% of the outstanding medical and dental bills. I have since got a full time job with medical and dental benefits which costs me $150 a month. The outstanding medical and dental bills for last year were $1500 for his share. He refuses to pay. How do I collect? Thanks......

I thought when someone had a medical card, the state paid all the expenses?

What does your order say in regards to the NCP paying for these bills? For example, does it say you have to submit them within a certain amt of time? That he has X number of days to pay them? Did you even submit them to him? We kinda need some more info.
 

JETX

Senior Member
How do I collect?
A couple of hammer strikes on his knees should help. :D

Seriously, there are several methods you could try (contempt order, new suit, etc.) but no one can even guess what it might actually take, if anything, to force him to comply with the court order.
 

sherraechas

Junior Member
unpaid bills

The medical card refused to pay for a daughter's wisdom teeth removal. They said that it was not necessary. Ditto another daughter's braces which were NOT for cosmetic reasons, but because of ongoing TMJ problems. The judge's order did NOT say how to get the money for unpaid bills. I submitted them to his attorney (ex. wanted his lawyer to review them) Then I have sent copies of the bills to his house and nicely reminded him of his legal obligation and have asked them to please pay them as soon as possible. I even said he could make payments. (even though I had to take out a loan to pay for them) He called one daughter with a 10 minutes monologue about how he was "not trying to get out of paying her dental bill, but had to talk to his attorney" I have not received one cent and am wondering about collecting for the next 10 years until my youngest is 18. What a pain. Is it worth it to pay the money to go back to court to collect? Can I go to small claims?
 

GrowUp!

Senior Member
The medical card refused to pay for a daughter's wisdom teeth removal. They said that it was not necessary. Ditto another daughter's braces which were NOT for cosmetic reasons, but because of ongoing TMJ problems. The judge's order did NOT say how to get the money for unpaid bills. I submitted them to his attorney (ex. wanted his lawyer to review them) Then I have sent copies of the bills to his house and nicely reminded him of his legal obligation and have asked them to please pay them as soon as possible. I even said he could make payments. (even though I had to take out a loan to pay for them) He called one daughter with a 10 minutes monologue about how he was "not trying to get out of paying her dental bill, but had to talk to his attorney" I have not received one cent and am wondering about collecting for the next 10 years until my youngest is 18. What a pain. Is it worth it to pay the money to go back to court to collect? Can I go to small claims?
Did you even bother to consult the other parent regarding the medical decision to have wisdom teeth removed and to get braces for one of the children? Do you have joint legal custody and/or what does your court order say regarding consulting the other parent re: medical decisions? Even if you do not have joint legal and/or the order doesn't contain language regarding consulting the other parent, in Ohio it is my understanding that you are still obligated to consult with the other parent re: these types of medical decisions due to the costs.

Since medicaid/healthy start (or whatever you have in OH) refused to pay it because it was not medically necessary, that certainly put the ball in his court. If you didn't bother to consult him at all and you just went and did it, I would count on YOU paying those bills.
 

sherraechas

Junior Member
My ex was told about the daughter who needed the braces because of headaches. Her teeth were pushing against eacher other and she had a major bite problem. I sent him the advice of our family dentist and asked him to go in and talk with her. He said he would, but it died for neglect. Ditto the wisdom teeth. (Just because Medicaid says it is not bad enough to do- doesn't mean it shouldn't be done) I have full custody, and he has visitation. The judge said I have the right to decide what is to be done medically and dentally. So, I paid my % and now I am trying to collect his that I also paid. I don't want to argue who owes what......that is clearly defined by the judge's order. The problem is that it was never specified how to collect it. It just said that HE was to pay 76% of ALL unpaid medical bills. SO my question is how am I able to collect it?
 

wondreing

Member
My ex was told about the daughter who needed the braces because of headaches. Her teeth were pushing against eacher other and she had a major bite problem. I sent him the advice of our family dentist and asked him to go in and talk with her. He said he would, but it died for neglect. Ditto the wisdom teeth. (Just because Medicaid says it is not bad enough to do- doesn't mean it shouldn't be done) I have full custody, and he has visitation. The judge said I have the right to decide what is to be done medically and dentally. So, I paid my % and now I am trying to collect his that I also paid. I don't want to argue who owes what......that is clearly defined by the judge's order. The problem is that it was never specified how to collect it. It just said that HE was to pay 76% of ALL unpaid medical bills. SO my question is how am I able to collect it?
My ex and I have an order from Ohio that is very vague too. It states that he shall maintain major medical insurance on the kids through his employer. Then says he further agrees to be solely responsible for any medical expenses not compensated for by insurance and then lists what is considered medical expenses. That's the entire wording, no mention of how to notify or how long to give him to pay. Our order was part of our original divorce decree. You might want to consult with an attorney but filing contempt charges, as a poster mentioned above, might be the way to go.
 

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
My ex was told about the daughter who needed the braces because of headaches. Her teeth were pushing against eacher other and she had a major bite problem. I sent him the advice of our family dentist and asked him to go in and talk with her. He said he would, but it died for neglect. Ditto the wisdom teeth. (Just because Medicaid says it is not bad enough to do- doesn't mean it shouldn't be done) I have full custody, and he has visitation. The judge said I have the right to decide what is to be done medically and dentally. So, I paid my % and now I am trying to collect his that I also paid. I don't want to argue who owes what......that is clearly defined by the judge's order. The problem is that it was never specified how to collect it. It just said that HE was to pay 76% of ALL unpaid medical bills. SO my question is how am I able to collect it?
Did you send him proof that you paid your percentage as well as the first $100 out of pocket? How long did you hold the bills before sending them to him for payment? You having full custody and him having visitation means nothing. What the judge said means nothing. What does your COURT ORDER state word for word about medical expenses.
 

sherraechas

Junior Member
My court papers state exactly: "Medical expenses for the minor children shall be governed by Exhibit C attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference." The worksheet orders my ex to pay 76.16% of the medical bills. I paid the first $100 AND his share of the bills. I notified him before the braces/wisdom teeth were removed. I asked him to go to the dentist to set up payments. This was 6 weeks before the treatment. He ignored the request. Because the treatment was necessary, I took out a loan and paid the full amount. I then sent him the bill and also a copy of the cancelled check AND had the dentist office write a note to him stating that I paid all the bills. So there was no deceit here. I am merely trying to collect on his legal obligatory debt. Paying for a lawyer to file contempt charges will eat up the amount his owes. I am more concerned about future payments for the next 10 years.
 

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
My court papers state exactly: "Medical expenses for the minor children shall be governed by Exhibit C attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference." The worksheet orders my ex to pay 76.16% of the medical bills. I paid the first $100 AND his share of the bills. I notified him before the braces/wisdom teeth were removed. I asked him to go to the dentist to set up payments. This was 6 weeks before the treatment. He ignored the request. Because the treatment was necessary, I took out a loan and paid the full amount. I then sent him the bill and also a copy of the cancelled check AND had the dentist office write a note to him stating that I paid all the bills. So there was no deceit here. I am merely trying to collect on his legal obligatory debt. Paying for a lawyer to file contempt charges will eat up the amount his owes. I am more concerned about future payments for the next 10 years.
Contempt is the option you have. He is not following the court order so you have to take him back to court and have the court deal with him. How long has he had to pay these?
 

sherraechas

Junior Member
I have been trying to collect for 8 months now......If I file for contempt, do I need to use my lawyer? If the judges finds my ex in contempt, will I be able to also recoup my lawyer's fees? Thanks.
 

GrowUp!

Senior Member
I have been trying to collect for 8 months now......If I file for contempt, do I need to use my lawyer? If the judges finds my ex in contempt, will I be able to also recoup my lawyer's fees? Thanks.
No, you don't necessarily need a lawyer, but if you do retain one, you should ask in your motion to show cause that he be taxed for all costs associated with that action and reimbursement of your attorney's fees.

You can file a motion to show cause pro se. Then briefly explain the attempts you made in your memorandum in support.
 

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