4 Yr Old Medical Bill in Collections?

I just received a first notice stating a 4 yr old claim which insurance should've paid for was now in collections. The collection agency provided me with a phone number for the creditor. I called and they said another company handled billing at the time, so I called this company who confirmed I owed the money, said insurance sent the check, but it was sent to the wrong doctor, and it was still being handled through insurance. They said they didn't send it to collection, and that the new billing company would've been responsible for that. After three calls to each company all with different people, both companies continued telling me these conflicting reports. How should I proceed in order to ensure that insurance pays it like they're supposed to and that it doesn't go any further with the collection agency? Will insurance deal with the collection agency if I ask them to?

By the way, it's a small amount. (Less than $200.)

No, the insurance company isn't going to deal with a collection agency, and the collection agency isn't going to talk to the insurance company. They are two seperate transactions.

What you need to do, is get a statement from the insurance company stating this was paid, on what date, to whom, and for how much. Then you forward that to the collection agency who's trying to collect - it's called, "disputing the debt". That should clear it up - but you have to do everything IN WRITING.

Keep copies of everything you send, in case this ends up in court.

talk to a lawyer