Expert: Ontrack Financial Group llc - 11/4/2008

Question
My husband took one of our children to the emergency room at our local hospital at the beginning of the year. The emergency room physicians work separate of the hospital so they bill deferent. After our insurance paid we got the bill from the hospital and paid it, not thinking about any more bills.
We started getting calls from a third party collection that are known for being scum. My husband called back but they wanted his social security number before talking to him. No way.
We were checking his credit reports and they put a collection from this medical office that the emergency physicians work for twice for the same amount of $18 (left over after insurance paid) and once on another credit report.
I called the medical office and they were given a wrong address from the Hospital. I called a week ago and we still have not received the bill at the correct address. My husband has disputed the collections on his credit report and I sent certified mail a cease to communicate letter to the collection office except to tell us the bill has been sent to correct address or case removed.
What else can we do to remove this bill from collections and from my husband's credit reports? It was not our fault, hospital has had our correct mailing address for years and we got their bill, it had to been a human error on their part.

Answer
Dear Deanna,

Thank you for the question.


Even though the billing department sent the bill to the wrong address they still performed a service.  

Contact the hospital and plead with them to have the collection agency remove the negative trade line from the credit bureau due to their error.  They may instruct the collection agency to remove the negative item.  This sounds like 'ER Physicians" being handled by NCO.

Because the terms of the hospital's "conditions of admissions" refer to payment at time of service.  They have every right to keep this past due account on the credit bureau.

Michael Moore

Ontrack Financial Group llc

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