Virtually everyone will face medical bills at some point in their lives, but you don’t have to let medical bills turn into medical debt. Ensuring that you pay your medical bills on time is important for several reasons, and handling debt quickly can save you a lot of headaches down the road.

You’ll Get Reminders

If you don’t pay your medical debt, the first thing that will likely happen will be that your service provider will send letters reminding you of your debt. These notices often go out once per month. After 90 days of non-payment, your debt may then be sent to a collections agency.

Dealing With Collections Agencies

Collections agencies may start to call your phone as well as send you letters. These communications must follow certain guidelines, but they can come across as very intimidating. Some communications may alert you to the fact that unpaid debt may end up in court. Although this is rare for smaller debts, it is possible to be sued to collect very large debts.

The Potential for Denied Service

In the United States, hospitals cannot deny emergency medical care to someone in distress, regardless of that person’s ability to pay. A doctor’s office can, however, drop you as a patient. Once again, this is rare, but if you haven’t paid large amounts of medical debt to your doctor’s office or a lab, you may be dropped as a patient.

Staying on Top of Your Medical Debt

There are several ways to stay on top of medical debt, including using a health savings account (HSA). This type of savings account is usually provided by an employer, and it allows you to save tax-free money to be used specifically for healthcare expenses. If you would like to know about -"how much can I save with an HSA", visit this website.

You may be wondering, “how much can I save with an HSA?”, and the answer is that it depends on the current year’s limit. In 2022, people who contribute to an HSA can save $3,650 for individuals and $7,300 for families.

If you’re wondering “how much can I save with an HSA?” in terms of saving money on medical costs, the answer is that you likely will not save money on most healthcare expenditures. Some service providers may, however, issue a discount if they look at HSA funds the same as paying with cash.

Read a similar article about “is an HSA tax-deductible” here at this page.