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Medical bills don’t have to kill credit score anymore
An empty walletPhoto byTowfiqu barbhuiyaonUnsplash
Millions of Americans who were hospitalized for COVID or another health condition you probably have mounting medical debt that may impact your credit score. But there may be a glimmer of hope according to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Capital One and CNBC.
“Here are the details of the new changes effective July 1, 2022: Paid medical debt that was in collections will no longer be included on consumer credit reports. You’ll have more time before unpaid medical debt is reported on your credit report: Unpaid medical debt that is currently in collections for one year will be reported on credit reports. This is an increase from six months that was enacted in 2017. Starting in the first half of 2023, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion will no longer include medical debt in collections under $500 on credit reports. (CNBC.com)
Jeff Smedsrud, the co-founder of HealthCare.com and a RIP Medical Debt board member said this is a “tremendous thing” for consumers as medical debt is a financial killer for many — not just the elderly or those with medical conditions. In a recent Healthcare.com survey, all living generations indicated their medical debt has harmed their credit scores, with millennials being the highest at 52%.”
This is excellent news for Long Haulers like myself who are still dealing with some long term effects from COVID. “Long COVID” keeps us busy with follow-up visits, tests from specialists, labs and pharmacies.
Healthcare is already expensive with insurance premiums and copays, but few factor in the cost of unpaid time off, fuel costs, and time and effort to schedule appointments, monitor and dispute bills (which is way too often of an occurrence.
Hopefully this news is helpful — I know it’s life and credit score saver for me.
Thank you for reading!
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