California Business Bureau, Inc. is a Monrovia, California company that collects bad-debt medical bills for healthcare providers and handles billing through its Medical Billing Services division. A CBB letter almost always concerns a hospital or medical bill.
- Type
- Collection agency
- Also known as
- California Business Bureau, Inc.; CBB; Medical Billing Services (MBS)
- Headquarters
- Monrovia, CA
- Collects
- medical bills, hospital bills, workers' compensation accounts
- Phone numbers it lists
- (800) 755-1515, (800) 755-1533
- Website
- cbbinc.com
57 debt collection complaints were sent to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau about California Business Bureau, Inc. from November 13, 2023 to November 12, 2026. A complaint is a consumer's account, not a finding that the company broke the law. Read the complaints in the CFPB database.
Who Is California Business Bureau?
California Business Bureau, Inc. (CBB) was founded in 1973 by Michael J. Sigal, according to its website, and is now led by chief executive Michael Cheek. It works "exclusively" for the healthcare industry. The company has two parts: CBB, which "specializes in bad debt medical bill collections," and a division called Medical Billing Services (MBS), which bills insurers and follows up on self-pay balances for providers. Its staff directory lists offices in Monrovia and San Diego, California. The main CBB number is (800) 755-1515; MBS uses (800) 755-1533. Despite the name, CBB is a private collection company, not a government agency or the Better Business Bureau.
Why California Business Bureau May Be Contacting You
If you hear from CBB, a hospital, physician group or other provider has most likely referred an unpaid patient balance. MBS may contact you earlier, while the provider still treats the bill as an active account, for example to get insurance information or arrange self-pay. CBB generally becomes involved after the provider writes the balance off as bad debt. The company also has a department for workers' compensation billing and liens, so an injured worker may hear from it about treatment billed to a comp claim.
How to Check a Debt California Business Bureau Says You Owe
Medical balances are frequently wrong because of insurance processing, so treat any CBB letter as the start of a review, not the final word.
- Request an itemized bill from the provider showing every charge, what insurance paid and what was adjusted. For care in Texas, a health care provider may not pursue collection until it has sent you an itemized bill (see our post on SB 490).
- Compare it to your insurer's explanation of benefits. Look for denied claims you can appeal, charges billed under the wrong policy, or amounts that should have been written off under an in-network contract.
- Check whether it is a workers' comp bill. Treatment for a covered work injury is generally the comp carrier's responsibility; tell CBB the claim number.
- Dispute in writing within the validation period stated on CBB's notice (15 U.S.C. § 1692g; 12 C.F.R. § 1006.34). CBB's website has a dispute form, but keep a mailed copy too.
- Mind the limitations period. Texas generally allows four years to sue on a debt (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.004); debt buyers may not sue on time-barred consumer debt (Tex. Fin. Code § 392.307). California and other states set their own deadlines.
What California Business Bureau Can and Can't Do
When CBB collects a provider's written-off patient accounts, it is a debt collector under 15 U.S.C. § 1692a(6). Some points that matter for medical debt:
- It cannot collect amounts your insurer's contract requires the provider to write off, or add fees the law does not allow (15 U.S.C. § 1692f(1)).
- It cannot discuss your medical bill with your employer or family, except to locate you (15 U.S.C. § 1692c(b)).
- The national credit bureaus have stopped reporting paid medical collections and medical collections under $500; see our update on medical debt reporting.
- It must honor Regulation F's call limits (12 C.F.R. § 1006.14(b)(2)).
We did not find a CFPB enforcement action against California Business Bureau. For more on medical-debt claims in Texas, see can I be sued over medical bills in Texas, or visit our Texas FDCPA attorneys page.
We Sue Debt Collectors That Break the FDCPA
Texas Debt Law files Fair Debt Collection Practices Act lawsuits against debt collectors in federal court for consumers in Texas, California, Illinois, Georgia and Colorado. If California Business Bureau or anyone collecting for it harassed you, misstated what you owe, threatened action it could not take, or told others about your debt, you may have a claim. A court can order a collector that violated the FDCPA to pay your actual damages, up to $1,000 in additional statutory damages, and your attorney's fees and costs (15 U.S.C. § 1692k(a)). An FDCPA claim generally must be filed within one year of the violation (§ 1692k(d)), so keep your letters, call logs, voicemails and screenshots, and talk to us early. Texas residents may also have claims under the Texas Debt Collection Act. Learn more from our FDCPA attorneys.
Free FDCPA Case Review(214) 851-2250
Or start your free case evaluation online. No lawyer can promise a result; every claim depends on its facts and proof.
Sources
- California Business Bureau: home page
- California Business Bureau: Our organization
- CFPB enforcement actions list
- CFPB Consumer Complaint Database: California Business Bureau, Inc., debt collection
This profile is general information compiled from public sources, not legal advice, and it does not state or imply that California Business Bureau has violated any law. Company details change; tell us if something here is out of date.