White House Unveils Plan to Reduce Medical Debt

1.5 minute read

With Americans facing rising inflation and some of the highest price increases in four decades, the White House announced new steps to protect consumers and reduce the burden of medical debt. According to the White House, one-third of American adults have medical debt, the second largest source of debt in collections. Medical debt isn’t just a financial issue, it can also have adverse health effects. Almost half of individuals with medical debt intentionally avoid seeking health care.

The White House aims to:

• Hold medical providers and debt collectors accountable for harmful practices
• Inform consumers of their rights in the complex medical billing landscape
• Forgive medical debt for over half a million low-income American veterans
• Reduce the impact medical debt plays in determining credit access, providing new opportunities for those with medical debt to buy a home or get a small business loan

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will create a new enforcement initiative to prevent unlawful medical debt collection. They are also reviewing whether medical debt should be removed from consumer credit reports altogether.

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