How long does a doctors office has to send me a bill for services rendered

My husband had a procedure in april 2010. And wew were under the asumption that we had paid our portion since it was required before the procedure. We made sure to called the doctor to find out exactly how much we would have to pay and they were happy to give us the amount which we paid the day of procedure. We just got a bill for the first time for $250.00 for services rendered. The statement shows that the insurance was bill on 5/06/10 they paid in 5/13/10 and I just got the bill for $250.00 on 6/16/2011. Is there a time limit for them to send bills to patients? Can they send me to collections and garnih my check if this is not paid. We don't even have that insurance anymore.