A bipartisan bill has been introduced in the House of Representatives that seeks to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act so that individuals making payments on unpaid medical debts would see their credit scores boosted.
The bill. H.R. 9890, called the Reporting Medical Debt Payments as Positive Consumer Credit Information Act of 2024, was introduced earlier this week by Rep. Don Bacon [R-Neb.], and Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez [D-Wash.].
The bill allows furnishers of medical debt information, such as debt collectors or healthcare providers, to report positive information to credit reporting agencies under certain conditions:
- Reporting Paid or Settled Medical Debt: A furnisher of medical debt can report information about a medical debt that has been fully paid or settled, even if the debt originated more than a year prior to the consumer’s current credit report.
- Reporting Payment Plans: If a consumer is actively and satisfactorily making payments under an agreed-upon payment plan for medical debt, the furnisher can report this positive payment performance to credit reporting agencies.
- Procedures for Positive Reporting: The bill requires consumer reporting agencies and credit score providers to adopt reasonable procedures to ensure that this positive information is included in credit reports, utilized in credit score generation, and fairly provided to users of credit reports.
“Medical bills shouldn’t affect an individual’s credit score,” said Rep. Bacon in a statement. “I do not support individuals getting penalized for medical bills being paid through payment plans. Some medical bills can cost thousands of dollars, if not more. Healthcare is one of the most unaffordable insurances for individuals.”
