My medical bill went into collections

[Anonymous]

I checked my credit score and saw that I have a medical bill that went into collections for 175. This was for a hospital. If I call the hospital and pay via phone, will that be good enough? Do I need to do anything regarding it having gone to collections? Or do i need to pay someone else now that it went to collections. Also, when will this be removed? Thank you, I never had a medical bill go into collections. This is something I must have thought I paid yet never did

[Anonymous]

You can call the hospital, but they may have a contract with the collection agency that requires that you pay the collection agency. The problem that will occur for you if that is the case is that you probably signed something agreeing to pay interest and attorney's fees so the bill is likely to be a bit more than the $175. Still, start with the hospital billing department and make sure you offer to pay the whole thing in a single installment - that is likely to get you somewhere if they aren't bound by a contract.

[Anonymous]

Ignore it. It will not affect your credit.

[Anonymous]

I received a hospital bill from a "collection agency" without ever getting a bill from the hospital itself. When I called the hospital the (very nice) person I spoke with told me the bill wasn't really from a collection agency; it was just the billing arm of the hospital.

The hospital was located in a poor agricultural area - we were traveling - and as best I could tell it was a tactic to scare people into paying a bill they might otherwise put on the bottom of the pile.