• dhtseany@lemmy.ml
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    8 days ago

    I say just don’t pay it. Let them threaten you all they want, they can’t put you into collections for medical debt. Throw out their letters, block their collection numbers from calling you, don’t give those slime balls a fucking penny.

    • DillyDaily@lemmy.world
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      7 days ago

      It’s not just about the money, seeing the UHC letter in your mailbox when you are not expecting it will bring back flashes of that night and that trauma.

      It’s like knocking on the door of a veteran at random intervals throughout the year too show them pictures of the war. It’s dehumanising.

      • Veneroso@lemmy.world
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        8 days ago

        No, they absolutely put you in collections.

        The debt falls off the credit report in several years.

        It’s also cleared by bankruptcy, and they can’t go after your relatives for it, excluding your estate, and let’s say that if you have medical debt, your estate probably isn’t worth pursuing.

        So fuck em.

        Not legal advice.

        • SpikedPunchVictim@lemmy.world
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          7 days ago

          They can not put you in collections (thank you, Biden). You can lose coverage, and have an opportunity to enroll in the same coverage on the next election cycle.

      • MystikIncarnate@lemmy.ca
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        8 days ago

        The system is deeply broken in the USA.

        Not all of the things that are broken about the system are making things worse for the civilians.

    • rarbg@lemmy.zip
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      7 days ago

      I never pay my medical debt lol. Under 200 won’t effect your credit btw so never pay bills under 200

    • BigDanishGuy@sh.itjust.works
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      8 days ago

      First off, how old’s that tweet (or whatever platform that is) you’re attempting to provide with “expert” legal advice?

      Secondly: That’s about the worst legal advice I’ve ever seen. There are actual productive approaches, but crumbling up the bills and sticking them in your ears, while going lalalalalalala I can’t hear you? If you’re not even disputing the claim, then you’re about to pay the debt somehow, maybe even through seizure of your property.

      • andros_rex@lemmy.world
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        8 days ago

        Not with medical bills. Most of the time you can get away with ignoring them. They sell them to a collection agency for pennies on the dollar, you ignore the phone calls or demand proof that you owe the money.

        • Mirshe@lemmy.world
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          7 days ago

          And more importantly, KEEP DOING THAT. Sometimes, these collection agencies are scummy as fuck. I had an agency try to collect four times for the exact same ambulance bill. Same account number and everything, and I had records from my insurance that they had paid for the agreed amount and closed the account.