Unpaid medical debt could appear in your credit reports if it is more than 365 days delinquent from the date of service and is over $500. You can review your credit reports to see whether unpaid medical debt appears there.
What to have in front of you
- Your credit reports, if you already have copies.
- Any consumer reports you have requested about your medical history.
- Any adverse action notice you received. It should include the name and contact information of the consumer reporting agency that provided the report.
Check your credit reports
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, says unpaid medical debt could appear in your credit reports when it meets both conditions: it is more than 365 days delinquent from the date of service and is over $500.
Review your credit reports to see whether unpaid medical debt appears there. If you find information you believe is wrong, you can ask for it to be corrected.
You can also review a consumer report from a specialty consumer reporting agency to see what information that agency has on file about your medical history. You may need to request reports from more than one agency to see what each has on file.
Request specialty consumer reports
Many specialty consumer reporting agencies provide free copies of reports every 12 months. You have to request a report individually from each agency.
Keep in mind that not every agency will have information on everyone. Some consumer reporting agencies may be able to charge a fee for a report.
The CFPB has a list of some specialty consumer reporting agencies and information about how to obtain copies of their reports. You can use that information to identify agencies and find out how to request reports from them.
When you receive a report, review it for the information the agency has on file about your medical history. If you spot an error, you can ask that it be corrected.
If you received an adverse action notice
Consumer reporting agencies, including specialty agencies, must give you a free copy of your consumer report upon request if you have received an “adverse action” notice.
For example, an insurance company may turn someone down for a life insurance policy based on a consumer report. That is an example of an adverse action. The insurance company must provide an adverse action notice with the name and contact information of the consumer reporting agency that supplied the report.
You have the right to get a free report from the agency identified in the adverse action notice. The notice gives you the agency’s name and contact information, so you can use it when requesting the report.
Once you have the report, you can review the information the agency has on file about your medical history. If you find an error, you can ask for a correction.
If you have been denied medical coverage
The CFPB recommends checking your reports for mistakes if you have been denied medical coverage or offered coverage with higher premiums in the past.
If the reports contain mistakes, you can dispute an error and ask for corrections. Reviewing the reports can show you what information the consumer reporting agencies have on file about your medical history.
If you received an adverse action notice, keep it with the reports you review. The notice identifies the consumer reporting agency that provided the report used for the action.
If you find information you believe is wrong
You can ask for errors in a consumer report to be corrected. The CFPB also says you can dispute an error and ask for corrections in a report.
You may find it useful to look at the report alongside any adverse action notice you received. The notice identifies the reporting agency, while the report shows the information that agency has on file.
Each specialty consumer reporting agency requires an individual report request. If you want to review reports from several agencies, request each one separately. Many provide free reports every 12 months, and an agency identified in an adverse action notice must provide you a free report upon request.
Where this comes from
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: “Do medical bills affect my credit and where do I find out what’s in my medical payment history?”