Nearly one in five U.S. households reports having some form of delinquent medical debt. Patients and their families are contacted by debt collectors for medical bills more than any other type of debt, and they usually see negative information on their credit records. In fact, in 2021, 43 million people will have outstanding medical bills on their credit reports.
Congress, federal agencies, and other agencies are taking steps to address the health care debt crisis facing millions of families. Congress passed the No Surprise Act to protect Americans from certain unexpected medical bills, including unexpected bills for emergency services from out-of-network providers. Additionally, the CFPB has told debt collection and consumer credit reporting companies that it cannot collect, provide, or report invalid health care debts.
Three national credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) have also removed all paid medical debt and medical debt less than one year old from consumer credit reports. They also took steps to remove all medical collections under $500. It is estimated that this change will remove from the credit history of approximately half of those with medical debt on their reports.
If you are one of the millions of Americans who are behind on medical bills, take steps to ensure this information does not affect your credit, including access to employment and housing. may be able to teach.
Check your credit report
A change recently introduced by a national credit bureau covers all medical bills reported by debt collectors, also known as medical bill collections. One of the first steps you can take is to check your credit report for any outstanding medical bills. Equifax, Experian and TransUnion now offer free online credit reports once a week through AnnualCreditReport.com.
- If you previously had medical collections less than $500, paid medical collections, or collections less than a year old on your credit report, make sure they no longer appear on your report. However, please note that this does not include credit card collections, even if you used your credit card to pay for medical expenses under $500.
- Also, check the report for inaccuracies.
- If you find a medical collection under $500, a paid medical collection, a collection under a year old, or an error in your report, you can dispute that information with a credit bureau.
Additionally, credit bureaus across the country have announced they will extend the amount of time an unpaid bill must be disputed, negotiated, or paid before it is reported. It used to take 60 to 120 days to be filed with a credit bureau, but credit bureaus nationwide now wait a year from a doctor’s visit for medical debt to show up on a credit report. If you can’t pay for your medical bills, you can qualify for a financial assistance program often called “charity care.”
Unable to Resolve Your Medical Debt Concern? File a Complaint
We hope that the No Surprises Act, recent actions by credit bureaus, and the CFPB’s own actions and guidance will alleviate the challenges many families face after receiving medical care. The CFPB also wants to make sure credit bureaus are doing their job of investigating any information that people dispute.
If you find invalid medical bills on your credit report, or have other issues disputing medical billing inaccuracies with a credit bureau, file a complaint with the CFPB.