At first blush, people seem to want to PFD (been there, done that - and it was the right decision in one instance, and would've been disastrous and just flat expensive-for-no-reason in others), and find some combination of a 1-2 punch or JackAttack to dispute their med. baddies.
Usually, you'll find that WhyChat's detailed HIPAA process works not only the most effectively, but the most pro-actively to address these baddies and keep them from popping back up as "zombie debt."
http://whychat.5u.com/hipltr.html
Some key points that I think are helpful:
-If you do not already have paper copies, mailed from each CRA, get them now. Even the online "real" copy may have truncated information that will show on the full paper reports. It's worth waiting a few days for the US mail, trust me.
-Oh, and get used to it - the post office will be your new second home in a few phases of hipaa. Don't think you're the first that wants to bypass this - we all want to. But there's no way around it. Some things just need to get sent via the mail.
-Go ahead and Opt Out of promotional inquiries with the CRA's. The biggest reason to do this is to avoid JDB's (junk debt buyers) from trolling through your reports for zombie debt. There are companies that will even make up debt, using info. found on your reports - if at any point you feel like opting back in, you can - but for now, opt out.
-And start working on deleting old addresses. The CRA's frequently will validate debt solely on the fact that the CA has matching addresses. (Experian is a pain - aka, the devil - and will fight you the hardest on this. Expect it. )
-Hipaa is NOT about erasing legit debts owed. Just because I owed $100 to a doctor, and knew I forgot to pay him, does NOT mean that JunkDebtBuyerSystems,Inc has any right to collect that $100.
I'll stray off of my list here to explain that a bit. There are many ways that JDB's end up with your information. They may have a partnership with the OC, where any monies collected are shared with the OC. They may have bought old, written off debt for pennies - any money they receive will pad their pockets and will never go to the OC. Or they may be the worst of the worst - they may have trolled your reports, and dug up zombie debt that you simply do not owe or created new debt that never existed in the first place.
Where does hipaa fit into all of this? You have the right to keep your medical information and records private. And it's against federal law to violate your privacy. It's that simple.
But more important than what I'm typing here: READ. I don't just mean read WhyChat's dispute letters, I mean read these threads - as many as you can. WhyChat is absolutely amazing, and has helped.. well, there's no telling how many people! And while you are, indeed, as unique as a snowflake, chances are good that your situation is remarkably similar to someone three threads down.
Having said all of that (so much for quick and dirty, but I got you to read, ha!) please, please, PLEASE try to remember that we are trying to help, but are not actually beholden to do so. If you post and don't get an immediate reply, or even w/in a day or two - ask yourself why that might be the case.
But don't be scared to ask when you start out or hit a stumbling point.
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