Oakland to forgive USD 200 million in medical debt

Oakland County announced a new plan to relieve the medical debt burden that so many struggle with, forgiving nearly $200 million.

“Even in a county as wealthy as Oakland County lots of folks carry medical debt that’s dragging them down,” said Oakland County Executive Dave Coulter. “I saw a statistic that quarter of a million people in this country last year did a GoFundMe to try to pay for their medical debt.”

The program is in partnership with nonprofit organization RIP Medical Debt.

“They’re focused on helping people that are most burden by medical debt and are at risk of poor health outcomes due to delays in care,” said Madiha Tariq, deputy Oakland County executive.

County officials will utilize $2 million of the county’s American Rescue Plan Act funds to purchase the medical debt of Oakland County residents for a fraction of its cost, then forgive their debt.

“RIP Medical has a program and a model that can leverage $200 million of debt for $2 million dollars,” Coulter said. “Now you got my attention because I want our ARP dollars to be transformational.”

Officials say about 114,000 Oakland County residents carry medical debt, and those who are eligible for the program don’t have to do anything to apply.

“You don’t apply for this, so don’t call the county, you don’t apply for these services,” Coulter said. “You’re in this hospital system, you’re in the medical system, we will find you (and) you will get a notification eventually.”

Those who have benefited from the program like Kyra who is a transplant survivor of two organs call it transformational.

“I received a pancreas and two kidneys,” she said. “I have a full-time job, I work at a mortgage company, I attend school, I pay for my classes (with) cash no problems. And I take care of my 8-year-old son all because RIP paid my debt.”

County officials say they expect to hear many positive stories as the program takes shape in Oakland County.

“I think it’s putting them on a path to a quality of life that they have been held back by the debt,” Coulter said. FOX 2 Detroit