First Person: Dealing With Overdue Hospital Debt
It can happen in the blink of an eye. An accident, a heart attack or any number of unforeseeable events can send you to the hospital for hours, days or even weeks. The resulting hospital bills can be staggering, even if you have a health insurance plan. What happens if you can't pay your hospital bill when you go back home? As a professional accountant, I have helped many clients get control of their unexpected hospital debts. Dealing with the situation head on will help you navigate the potential fallout from getting behind on debts.
Attempt to make installment payment arrangements directly with the hospital.
As with any other overdue debt, the key is to communicate - often. Ignoring the situation will only make it worse and may give the hospital the impression that you do not care about owing the money. Call the hospital's billing or accounting department and try to make arrangements to pay the bill over time. Make sure that you know how much you can pay every month so that you don't miss payments. Get any payment arrangement in writing so that both you and the hospital are on the same page about how much is owed and what the arrangements are.
Check with a lawyer in your state about limitations on collection action.
If you are still in discussions with the hospital but have been unable to come to a workable payment arrangement, start by finding out exactly what options the hospital has to collect on the debt. Some states have restrictions in place to stop hospitals from aggressive collection techniques and from slapping liens on your property. Understand the risk that your personal assets - including your home - are under in order to make sure that you avail yourself of all of the protections your state offers.
Avoid having a lien registered against your house where possible.
In many states, hospitals are allowed to register a lien against your personal property for amounts owed if they received a judgment in court. This means that they have "placed a hold" on the property and you cannot sell it or transfer it without paying off the debt with the proceeds. This can be especially difficult when the lien is on your house and you are planning to sell it. Many buyers will avoid houses with liens even though they will be satisfied with the sale proceeds. It is easier to purchase a house with a clear title. If you cannot make a firm payment arrangement with the hospital, negotiate a minimum interim payment arrangement that is enough for them to defer registering a lien.
Ensure that liens have been lifted when your debt is paid.
Once you have paid your debt in full, any liens on your house and other property should be lifted but this sometimes gets lost in the massive shuffle of paperwork. Check with your county records office to make sure the liens have been lifted. If they have not, have it corrected immediately with the hospital's collection office.
More From This Contributor:
Renting Versus Buying a Home: What Makes Sense in This Uncertain Economy?
Most Commonly-Missed Tax Breaks
Is Your Teenager Money-Savvy Enough to Go to College?
Published by Angie Mohr CA CMA - Featured Contributor in Business & Finance
Angie Mohr is a Chartered Accountant and Certified Management Accountant who has worked with thousands of business clients from home-based entrepreneurs to rock bands to celebrity chefs. She is also the auth... View profile
Your Medical Bills: Do You Really Owe All that Money?How consumers are cheated on their medical bills and insurance by unscrupulous physicians. What to look for and what to do about it.- Personal Finance: Top 10 BlogsAn outline and brief description of 10 personal finance sites that I find most helpful.
Personal Finance: It's Personal!Managing your personal finances takes more than just knowledge about money - it requires knowledge about yourself. This article is the first in an exclusive multi-series public...- Getting Help with Medical BillsMost people at some point find themselves in a position where they need help with medical bills. Being upfront about the fact that you don't have the money to pay and asking for assistance may be the best thing you ca...
- Personal Finance: Tracking Your Net WorthThis article gives tips on running your personal finances with the same big-picture perspective that a CFO uses on a corporate balance sheet.
- How to Make Payment Arrangements for a Civil Court Judgment
- How to Pay Medical Bills
- The Importance of Personal Finance for College Students
- 5 Helpful Tips on Using a Personal Finance Program
- Negotiating Medical Bills
- Over $29,000 in Medical Bills to $0 in a Year
- Medical Bills for the Uninsured Turned Over to Credit Card Companies and Banks
2 Comments
Post a CommentGreat advice!
Excellent information here. I work in a Register of Deeds office and I am often surprised at what some people have had to go through to get an old, paid lien off the records.