I recently had a situation with an Illinois Healthcare provider that I had managed to avoid for the last twenty years. Represented an older man for injuries he had received in an automobile accident. The client was a very nice guy who had come here from another country decades ago, worked hard and raised his family. Didn’t have much education, but always worked. He got pretty smashed up in the collision and had a fairly substantial hospital bill. He didn’t have any insurance at the time, so the hospital agreed to issue a lien for the outstanding amount, to be paid out of any settlement. Typically, [at least in my experience] the healthcare provider will usually accept a discounted amount in FULL AND FINAL SETTLEMENT OF ANY OUTSTANDING BILL. The reduction is an implicit acknowledgement that but for the efforts of the attorney, the medical bill would not have been paid. Getting back to my client, his bill was outstanding for a long time, so the hospital sent it out to collection. Collection agency contacts me and advises that after payment of the lien, they will pursue the client for any outstanding amount. I call the hospital and speak to personnel in management who agree that normally, after payment of the reduced amount, they forget about the balance. I pass this onto the collection agency, who insists on pursuing the client for any amounts outstanding. So although the hospital has conceded that their custom and practice is to accept the discounted amount in full settlement, the collections bloodsuckers refuse to budge. The inmates have apparently taken over the asylum. My only option is to bring a Motion to Adjudicate the Lien, which isn’t a particularly good option. Under 770 ILCS 23/45, healthcare providers are entitled to go after the entire amount. Hopefully the judge will recognize the unfairness of the collection agency ignoring hospital policy, and give my client a break. To be continued…