they normally don't, they try in house collections at first before they farm it out, but to answer your question, yes, they can.
Yes.
Yes. A hospital may use an outside agency to collect its debts. Most patients give the hospital permission to share information with a collection agency when they sign the "boilerplate" admission forms.
Yes, a hospital can sue you for nonpayment. If you fail to pay your hospital bill, the hospital will report your account to a collection agency.
Sure can and turn off the service.
A collection agency is commissioned to collect money from those who have defaulted on credit card bills or loans. The agency tries to recover as much money as possible.
You get a letter from the paid collection agency and send it as proof of payment to the new agency. In the mean time, you call the new agency and dispute the claim of debt. If they receive the letter and still harrass you, then you have the right to sue and turn their neames over to the BBB. This is only if you paid in full. If you settled, then the next agency can try to get the unpaid amount. Remember, there is a 4 year period on medical bills. After that, they can't collect, unless the hospital revitalized your account.
United STates Public health service
Most hospitals farm out collection accounts after 90 days of nonpayment to outside collection agencies.
Looking for a Collection Agency, involves to know what type of debt collection service is need it. For Commercial Collections or Consumer Collections it can be found on sites that regulate the collection industry like:The Commercial Law League of America ('CLLA'),ACA InternationalAlso is very important when you choose a Collection Agency look for an agency that is familiar with the collection laws on the state that apply the bad account.
yes
Yes, the debt is a legal "thing" and can be sold on to other organizations for collection.
A Commercial Collection Agency is and agency that collects debt on behalf of their clients, same as a consumer collection agency, but a commercial collection agency collects business to business.