INDIANAPOLIS — About half of adults in the U.S. say it is difficult to afford health care costs, according to new polling from KFF, a national policy research organization.
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Victoria Gonzales is a Fort Wayne mother of a 9-month-old baby boy named Adriel.
Motherhood got off to a rough start when Adriel ended up in the NICU.
“Immediately, I am worried about his health, and I'm like, 'How am I going to afford this?'” said Gonzales. “Every day that we were in once, we hit 30 days, and then 100 days, I was just like, 'Oh my gosh, when are these bills just going to hit?'”
Victoria ended up with $26,000 in medical bills, which stressed her out as a new mom.
“I give a name to my anxiety, which her name is Barb, so I call her out when she's just looping with anxious thoughts,” said Victoria.
She said she had to leave her rental house because of the debt.
Americans owe a total of $220 billion in medical debt, according to the national nonprofit KFF.
A new study from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health shows 24% of adults with healthcare debt experienced housing instability the following year, compared to just 6% of people who had no medical debt.
"Most of the time, you don't go out asking to take on medical debt, right?” said Thomas Nitzsche, VP at Money Management International, a national nonprofit that helps people get out of debt. “It's not like applying for a credit card or buying a new car or that sort of thing. It's very often a surprise sort of situation.”
Experts cite many reasons for the increasing burden of medical debt, including the rising cost of medical services and medicine, inadequate health insurance and high-deductible plans.
“Most Americans don’t have enough emergency savings in place to cover even a small surprise medical bill,” said Nitzsche. “The medical industry is one of the only industries where surprise billing is the norm. You don’t really get a written estimate when you seek medical care."
MMI is working with Victoria Gonzales to tackle her credit card debt.
“I've been paying it every month, and I feel so much better about it, and not just like watching mold grow in a corner,” said Victoria.
She’s already taken care of her NICU bills.
Nitzsche said when clients first start a debt management plan, accounts will close, which typically means a slight short-term dip in their credit score.
“Long term, our average client credit score increase is 82 points from start to finish on the program, which averages four years,” said Nitzsche.
MMI recommends getting help immediately, rather than waiting for the debt to snowball. According to the Indiana Action Poverty Institute, nearly one in five Hoosiers has some form of medical debt in collections.
Two pieces of legislation focused on addressing medical debt, Senate Bill 85 and Senate Bill 197, died in the Indiana House of Representatives in February.
SB 85 would have prevented a lien on a family's home due to medical debt, created affordable payment plans for hospital debt, required a pause on billing during insurance denial appeals, ensured that people received information on financial assistance options and protected more of an individual's wages from garnishment.
SB 197 would have protected more of a worker's paycheck when pursued for an overdue debt, and would have protected up to $1500 in a bank account from debt collection attempts.
TIPS FROM CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU
Request a detailed list of charges
Ask your healthcare provider or the debt collector for an itemized bill, sometimes called a “superbill.” A superbill shows each medical billing procedure code, the amount paid by your insurance, and the amount you owe. The list makes it easier to tell whether the charges are accurate.
Negotiate the amount you owe
Debt collectors might not tell you that medical charges can be negotiated. You can start by going back to the healthcare provider and asking for reductions. Then, you can talk to the debt collector and ask how to lower the amount you owe.
Submit a complaint
Debt collectors must comply with federal law. They can’t collect amounts that aren’t owed, and they can’t make harassing or abusive calls. They have to follow requirements about reporting debts to consumer reporting companies. They can’t call you around the clock, and you have the right to tell them to stop contacting you. See more about your debt collection rights and protections.
You can submit a complaint about a problem with a financial product or service, including debt collection, at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372).
Get legal help
You can sue debt collectors when they violate federal law. Talk with a lawyer about a medical charge you believe is illegal or a debt collector you believe is breaking the law. Your local legal aid agency or bar association has information about lawyers who can help you. See tips for finding an attorney in your state.
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