Hospital Bills, advice please.

[miss_cas]

I'm so sorry about your situation. I suffered a health problem and have had to deal with the hospitals/docs for 7 years now. I'm also on SSDI.

It was my impression that visually impaired people receive a flat rate of $1500 a month in SSDI. Check the website to confirm. Go into the local SS office and speak up.

Collections should be avoided. First, they will the agency will take you to court and you can have 25% garishment of your pay. SSDI is not garnishable.

If you own a home, I would take out a home equity loan to payback the bill. If you own an RV, boat, motorcycle or any jewelry worth anything, try selling this.

[indigo53]

Whether the hospital agrees to let someone make payments probably depends upon credit history and amount of the bill. What I don't like about the home equity vs the collections is that someone could move from bad credit to bad credit + no house.

[bumplett]

lol - he's probably scared to come back!

Seriously though, I agree with Palooka - I've had hospital bills on & off for the last 15 years due to my oldest son's surgeries.

I NEVER NEVER EVER EVER sign anything - I simply send them what I can every month, always on time, as much as possible, until it's paid in full.

Also, ask for a discount. we've always gotten a discount if we pay the bill in full (which may not be an option in this case, but worth asking anyway)

Only the most recent bill (Oct 2010) did I receive a "pay in full or else" statement, and when I called I was told that this is an automatic statement sent out via the computer system. It is ONLY the "collection" department within the hospital itsself. The computer doesn't realize that you're paying every month, since the computer doesn't have a brain......

They always cash my checks, so I just keep sending them.

good luck dear OP, regardless of what you decide to do.