I had an emergency surgery back in January. The hospital bill is over $31K. I can't pay it. I tried to negotiate with the hospital and they refused to work with me. I worked out a payment plan with all the other doctors, and bills from that surgery, but the hospital was a no-go. I don't know what else to do about this. I've never been in collections before, and I'm scared to death of getting sued. Bankruptcy is not an option at this time. I need my cash to live on. How long on average to go from "pre-collections" to getting sued? Any other advice?