Accretive Health fails to adequately respond to questions - U.S. Congress

June 21 (Reuters) - Medical billing services provider Accretive Health Inc failed to provide information on its debt collection practices sought by the U.S. Congress, according to a letter issued by two members of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Chicago-based Accretive, which provides billing, insurance verification and other services to healthcare providers, has seen its shares lose more than half their value since January, when the Minnesota Attorney General sued the company alleging violations of patients privacy.

In a letter sent to Accretive Chief Executive Mary Tolan, U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman and U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette said a public statement that the company had provided the U.S. House's Committee on Energy and Commerce was "not an appropriate response" to a request for internal documents.

The congressmen also said Accretive had ignored repeated efforts to reschedule a May 4 meeting between the two sides that the company had earlier canceled.

The letter stated that Accretive's actions had raised questions about its policies on patient contact and billing practices, besides its compliance with patient privacy laws.

Accretive was not immediately available for comment.

The company's shares closed down 4 percent at $11.84 on Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange.