Your first option is to contact the hopsital's accounts receivables department as to the possibility of making monthly payments on your bill (assuming you have no medical insurance to cover you) in an amount that you can afford as well as to discuss the possibility of reducing the principal amount claimed owed.If that tactic does not work and you simply do not have the money to pay what is owed as well as other expenses, from what you have written it seems that you need to consult with a bankruptcy attorney.