Medical bills against your credit score?

[meems]

I've always heard, medical bills cannot be held against your credit rating.

We are refinancing (4.375%, yeah baby!), on two of my credit reports is a collections bill, for $80 on something medical that dropped me quite a few points from the one credit report that didnt show it...it was paid 3 years ago. I don't have a clue what the original bill was...my credit is still near 800, it won't effect what I'm doing...so I won't bother looking into it, but..I'm confused on what I've always heard on medical bills & credit rating. Can someone clarify this for me?

[notsyourbeezwax]

I know that when I worked for a medical billing company we sent unpaid accounts to a collection agency, and the accounts were reported to credit bureaus. We got a lot of calls towards the end of each month from people who were refinancing, closing the next day, and our account showed up. If we did not have the correct address for the patient, we would have the agency remove the account from collections status. If the address was correct, we had to have payment in full (or proof of payment) before we would send a letter stating the bill had been satisfied. None of this can be done in a day, and most people were ticked. That is why you should check your credit scores regularly, and deal with these issues before they become a last minute issue.

That was the long version of my answer that, yes, unpaid medical bills do count against your credit score.

[amblnc38]

Yes, they can mess you up. It's part of the reason we really need a system overhaul.

Depending on how old it is, I would personally challenge the debt and make them prove you owe it, meanwhile find out what doctor it was for and try to find proof of payment. Doing this though can reopen the "wound" on your credit report though. But if you don't owe it...it shouldn't be there at all.

[thecooperhouse]

I know that most places that issue loans for houses don't pay attention to bad debt related to medical bills.

[tmsmalley]

It does impact your score and show on your report but many creditors ignore it if it is a medical bill.

Tess