I have a medical bill from an ambulance (long story, I never consented to being there etc.) and they never charged my insurance. I never saw a bill or got a phone call (I was out of the country), and now it has been reported.
I no longer have medical insurance with that provider, but at the time I DID have insurance, is there anything I can do to force them to take the debt out of collections and properly bill my insurance like they neglected to?
If they sent it to the credit bureau that means they sent it to you multiple times but you didn't respond. You can talk to the doctor, give them your old insurance information and ask them to try to re bill it. If not, sadly you will have to pay it or let it stay on your credit report. One medical debt on your credit report probably won't do much damage. But if you plan on taking out a loan in the future you will need to pay it ASAP. Depending on the loan it could make your interest higher OR if you want to buy a home they will make you pay it or you won't get a loan. At least, that is what they did with me.
On another note, if the bill is pretty high and you are stuck with it, you can negotiate a lower payment with a collection agency. That is one positive thing about a bill going to collections that in most cases they can knock off fees and a percentage of the original bill if you agree to a payment plan or one time payment. Of course, a payment plan will be an automatic draft, so be prepared for that. Also, if they won't knock off anything you can ask if it is still "owned" by the doctors office. If so, you CAN pay the doctor directly if the doctor will accept payment. Sometimes these credit collection agencies don't buy the debt, but they are assigned to collect on it and they get a portion of the collection. I have always been one who hated collection agencies and thought they were bottom feeders. Once I had a hospital debt from a time way before Obamacare where I had no insurance and was 19 and had to be in the hospital. I got a summons that I was being sued, I went down to the hospital and paid them directly, I didn't pay their lawyer or extra fees. So...feel it out and see what is best for you.
