A church in Texas has purchased and forgiven more than $10 million in unpaid medical debts by partnering with RIP Medical Debt.
The church’s pastor made the announcement during Easter Sunday ceremonies. The $10 million will wipe out the medical debts for about 4,000 families in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, according to a published report.
RIP Medical Debt has been incredibly popular of late, having worked with TV stations across the country in drives to raise money to wipe out medical debt. The organization purchases debt portfolios and then sends notifications to the individuals with the unpaid debts that those debts have been forgiven and do not need to be repaid.
The organization was thrust into the spotlight nearly two years ago when HBO’s “Last Week Tonight” with John Oliver featured a segment on the debt-buying industry and had $15 million of debt forgiven.
In this case, Stephen Hayes, a pastor at Covenant Church in Dallas, wanted to do something nice for his community and pay it forward after his church helped him repay hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills after he spent 12 days in a coma as a teenager following a car accident.
The church raised $100,000, which allowed them to buy $10 million of unpaid debts, including those of veterans and families.
