My question involves collection proceedings in the State of: Maryland
In 2003, I went to a medical clinic in Maryland. I did/do have insurance coverage which allows me to obtain coverage at a medical facility of my choice and am not restrained from referrals or networks. However, on the date of my service, this clinic told me they do not accept my insurance and would be treating me as an uninsured. The agreement at the time was that they would reduce the total fees for the visit and that I would need to make payment in full that day. I did pay them for the visit ($200) and never received any follow-up bills/notices from them.
In 2005, while on a business trip, I get a call from a doctor's office asking for my current insurance information so they could submit a claim. I was travelling on the road and not familiar with this company so I did not give them my information.
Turns out, the clinic's name (and I would assume management) had completely changed. Fast forward to 2007. I receive a collection letter from this new clinic for an outstanding bill from 2003. I believed I had already paid this bill so didn't think I was responsible to pay. I recently discovered that it is now on my credit report and affecting my credit score.
I was wondering if they can legally do this? Can they change the terms of the agreement two years after the fact? There was no communication for two years after the date of service. What I think happened is their new management did accept my insurance coverage, and they wanted to go back through old records to try and receive benefits for these older services.
Don't they have a responsibility to a) provide a bill to let me know what my costs were within a certain period of time? And, b) if they were to submit to my insurance company, shouldn't this also have been done within a certain period of time? Is there a statute of limitations on this kind of thing? Is there anything that can be done about how this affects my credit score as well?
Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated.

