Not looking to stay on the sidelines, a member of the Rhode Island legislature has introduced a bill that would cap the interest rate that can be charged on unpaid medical debt while also banning healthcare providers from reporting information about medical debts to the credit reporting agencies.
The Definitions: When it comes to these types of bills, definitions matter. Here is how this bill defines some of the key terms:
- Medical debt is defined as an obligation of a consumer to pay an amount for the receipt of health care services, products, or devices.
- The definition of credit report would be amended to include a provision for “Any report containing information solely as to transactions or experiences between the consumer and a health care provider for medical debt.”
- The credit reporting provision would apply to any healthcare facility licensed by the state, including physicians and ambulance services.
Details: The bill, 2024-H 7103, was introduced by Rep. Shallcross Smith, a Democrat.
What It Does: The bill would prohibit providers from furnishing information about medical debts to credit bureaus and would require providers to have a provision in their contracts with collection entities that purchase or collect on the medical debts that prohibits the reporting of any portion of the medical debt to a credit bureau.
- The bill would also limit the interest rate on medical debt to 3% per year, even in cases where a judgment has been awarded.
- Courts are prohibited from issuing executions on judgments against an individual’s primary residence for any judgment in which the claim was based on an unpaid medical debt.
- Salaries or wages would not be allowed to be garnished to recover any unpaid medical debt.
