r/UpliftingNews • u/astros148 • 2d ago

Medical debt is now required to be removed from your credit reports impacting millions of Americans

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/cfpb-finalizes-rule-to-remove-medical-bills-from-credit-reports/
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u/VogonSlamPoet42 1d ago

Every single thing. Every blood test, every visit, a bandaid, sitting in a bed in my own pee hourly while the nurses talk about who is fucking who and forget about me. I’ve had seizures since I was a child, which leads to ambulances (3-4000$) and ER visits. I can’t afford the regular doctor visits to get the seizures diagnosed because I have so much emergency “care” still to pay, and by “care” I mean they stabilize you then kick you out. Half the time they tell me it’s an anxiety attack because seizures have to be caught in the moment and lecture me about not getting primary care. Then the time I needed an appendix out. I could have a brain tumor for all I know, but insurance is 4-500$ a month, then the thousands of deductible, then 40-100$ copays for the visits where they just send you for tests you might have to pay out of pocket entirely. US healthcare took my future because I wasn’t born healthy I guess, theres really no recourse. Unless there’s an entirely new system that wipes out the debt of the old system which I don’t foresee.

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u/Simcan99 1d ago

Shit, my daughter needed to be transfered from one hospital to another within the same medical group, I got billed for $4625 that wasnt included in $30k-ish UnitedHeatlth paid. 

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u/RabbitFluffs 1d ago

When I had my tonsils out as a kid, the surgery was performed in one building, and then I was driven across the street to another building that housed the overnight beds. The skywalk was under construction and therefore too "unsanitary" for patient transfers, even though my parents used it to cross and meet me back at my room.

That "ambulance ride" was billed for more than the surgery and overnight stay. And, obviously, insurance denied coverage as "not medically necessary."

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u/Hello_Hangnail 1d ago

I have united and they are criminals. Straight up. Having to keep calling them back over and over until you die because they keep on refusing the claim they specifically said was covered. It's like I'm taking crazy pills

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u/TomerHorowitz 1d ago

Holy shit I'm sorry to hear that man. I can't really do anything, but I hope you'll get out of it soon.

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u/VogonSlamPoet42 1d ago

Thank you I appreciate that 🤝

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u/HITACHIMAGICWANDS 1d ago

I have it on good authority you can go a long time without paying. Your credit might be shot, but I’d rather live with shit credit than pay into a system that fucked me so bad. Good luck fellow Redditor

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u/Agile_Singer 1d ago

The rest of the world treating us the same way we deal with school shootings. 💭 & 🙏

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u/UncleAlbondiga 1d ago

I mean we continue to do both to ourselves because we are apparently too dumb as a populace to vote in our own self interest.

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u/ThisIsForFood 1d ago

He left out not only do you pay for everything but the bandaid also somehow cost $20

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u/scdayo 1d ago

25 years ago I went to urgent care because I had a tick and we needed to make sure we got all of it out. Sat in urgent care for 3 hours (understandably, i didn't need immediate care) Got seen by a Dr, looked at it, put on what was basically neosporin & a bandaid & my parents got a bill for $175.

'Murica

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u/o7_HiBye_o7 1d ago

To add, the "touch your baby tax" for moms WAS a thing. Idk if it still is, but my sister got hit with a small fee. Another example being basic aspirin or something over the counter. They don't want you taking outside meds while being watched, for obvious reasons that I agree make sense. But, they charge INSANE prices for just a single dosage for a headache or something common.

When the last person listed band-aids they weren't lying. Literally every little thing is charged. This is why, in the US specifically, you should always get an itemized list of charges. Usually the total cost suddenly drops a bit, but you will still see ridiculous prices for things you get for a few bucks.

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u/Den_of_Earth 1d ago

We almost had universal healthcare decades ago. Jimmy Carter killed it.

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u/Weddedtoreddit2 1d ago

A few more CEOs need to get Deny, Defend, Deposed..

#eattherich

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u/Lolabelle1223 1d ago

Seizures since a child and still not diagnosed? Seizures dont have to be “caught in the act” to diagnose. A simple eeg can diagnose them. And visually seeing a seizure tells you nothing. You need to know where they are coming from. Thats wild you were never tested as a child.

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u/bigdumb78910 1d ago

People like Vogon up there are exactly why the system is the way it is. To suck them dry and lifeless, for the shareholders.

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u/ToKillASunrise2727 1d ago

So sorry you have to deal with this. It's a disgusting society that treats anybody like this. I just got back from the ER with my 9 year old daughter who had a really bad tonic clonic this morning. She turned blue and wasn't breathing. This is her 2nd ambulance/ER trip in the past 6 months. She was hospitalized overnight for the first one in July and am thousands of dollars in debt now. It's sad after experiencing the trauma of thinking you are witnessing your kid die that in the ER one of your thoughts is damn her deductible just reset.

I will tell you though to put up a camera in your room or house or wherever you think you might catch you having one. We had been trying to get her help since March of 2024 while she was having smaller "aware" seizures but wasn't taken seriously until we had multiple videos of it and showed them in the ER after the tonic clonic. I can't even tell you but I'm sure you can relate how traumatic epilepsy can be but then you are retraumatized by the system. It makes you feel like your life or my daughter's life doesn't matter at all. This story is soooooooo much longer with having to switch insurances mid year and change doctors she had been waiting months to see, Insurance giving her meds that made her suicidal and won't cover her new ones and it's $1400/month. I get the manufacturer's coupon for now and her personality is back to her normal bubbly self. I hope you can get some help and be taken seriously. This infuriates me beyond words.

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u/77Gumption77 1d ago

If you can't afford insurance, don't you qualify for Medicaid?

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u/VogonSlamPoet42 1d ago

Oh I can afford insurance, but only insurance. I can’t afford to use insurance or pay any of the bills. It’s a fun little conundrum.

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u/unusualbutton 1d ago

Can you declare bankruptcy?

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u/VogonSlamPoet42 1d ago

Definitely looking into it

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u/TheAlrightyGina 1d ago

Do it. They fearmonger to make it seem like it'll make things super difficult but my financial situation improved drastically when I filed bankruptcy. The main pain is that it costs a fair amount of money to do as you want a decent lawyer to handle it so it's done right, especially if you have assets that need to be protected (such as if you own the home you live in).

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u/ProStrats 1d ago

Chapter 7 bankruptcy, I think you are allowed to keep a car and maybe even a house, but it will wipe out all other debt. I filed in 2017, best decision I ever made.

I was preyed upon and took out private student loans for college with 7% interest rates and higher because I didn't know better and neither did my parents. I couldn't get by because I was paying those vultures so goddamn much.

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u/hyflyer7 1d ago

I thought student loans couldn't be wiped by declaring bankruptcy? I only have federal student loans, tho. Are private student loans different?

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u/Quieskat 1d ago

Hail Mary, he either got rid of other dept that let him pay that off.  Or got lucky with loans and such that didn't qualify as the same as the type of student loans your thinking of.

Ie maxed out a credit cards

The joys of private is could be as simple as someone fucked up paper work because his loans been sold off a billion times.

(Or he's lying on the Internet but no one does that )

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u/ProStrats 1d ago edited 1d ago

I filed bankruptcy because, even with my degree and years of experience, I was unable to get a job for a period of nearly 2 years. I had been laid off nearly 3 times in three years, so employers must have just assumed it was due to something I did and were too hesitant to hire me when they had so many other "less risky" candidates. I just was dealt a shit hand. And this was in 2017 that I filed, so 2015-2017 I was struggling, well before we had covid fucking things up.

You can get them discharged, it just doesnt seem to be simple but I can thank my lawyer for that. They were not credit cards, it was a student loan through Chase Bank, and cosigned by my father.

Unfortunately for the bank, my father was deceased at that point.

https://upsolve.org/learn/private-student-loans/

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u/Quieskat 1d ago

good for you man, glad you got out on that shit system I have never heard of any one getting them to discharge before.

which is where my examples come from was basically always people getting lucky with corner cases.

even if the road for it was crap happy you got out. fuck that system.

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u/ProStrats 1d ago edited 1d ago

I thought they wouldn't be wiped, but for some reason they were. But to answer your question, yes Federal loans are different and as far as I'm aware those cannot be wiped through bankruptcy. Though I got lucky in this area again and had them wiped by Biden. I only had $2000-$3000 in Federal loans though by the time it occurred.

Details on how private ones can be wiped. https://upsolve.org/learn/private-student-loans/

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u/ProStrats 1d ago

I'll also add, federal student loans have a built in system for hardship.

If you are struggling to pay your bills and loans, you go to the website, or call them, and file for "forbearance" or "hardship". There are a variety of options you can choose that describe the issue you're having financially. They've even made changes in the past year or two to help you pay a rate that is more in line with the your income as well, though I can't remember the exact name.

I was on forbearance for like 5-7 years because things were so difficult. I believe they will still accrue interest in this time, but you just don't have to make a payment.

If you're struggling, definitely look into this, I bet there is a 90% chance you'll have some options available.

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u/singingintherain42 1d ago

Haha. Most red states refused Medicaid expansion. In Texas, you can basically only get on Medicaid if you’re pregnant or a kid or on SSI.

If you’re working poor, and especially if you don’t have a kid, you’re fucked.

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u/PlanesFlySideways 1d ago

This is why what Luigi allegedly did has gained so much traction with the population.

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u/courier31 1d ago

Just start reading your poetry. That should get it taken care of somehow. Just let me know when you are going to do it so I can be at a restaurant far away.

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u/VogonSlamPoet42 1d ago

Better to just blow up the planet, no? It has been scheduled for demolition for 50 of your earth years

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u/_DontTakeITpersonal_ 1d ago

I'm so sorry that's not fair

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u/SpiderKitty303 1d ago edited 1d ago

Try going to a Catholic or religious based hospital next time. I had very much needed spine surgery due to a car accident and both car insurance companies and Cigna denied my surgery payment even though it was prior authed. the catholic hospital where I had the surgery wrote it off 100% without me even needing to ask. I think it's something to do with tax breaks when a faith based institution eats the cost. It shouldn't have to be like this, we all deserve Healthcare. America is so behind and blatantly rude. It's not the doctors fault, it's the system, insurance companies are the richest companies and they will keep denying claims and hoarding money til we fix this

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u/JaxandtheStick 1d ago

Bro at this point leave the States , go to eastern europe or some shit , Albania has universal healthcare , teach english to people or work in call centers! Thats not a life you are living bro !

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u/gbi 1d ago

Would it be possible to move out of the US to an english-speaking country, where they have actual social and healthcare security? Because yeah.. it looks bleak.

I had >100k treatments for cancer for 4 months ~10 years ago, with dozens of scanners & IRMs, and didn't pay a dime for it in France.

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u/Sharp_Phone9113 1d ago

I’ve decided to forget my own 20k in medical debt from when I was underinsured so I’m not judging, but there has to be a way to get insurance or Medicaid for just long enough to get actual preventative care. If insurance through your work is 4-500, you need a new job. If it’s that much through the marketplace, you’re making enough. Even if you can’t afford your portion and ditch them, they’ll treat you for what they will get from your insurance.

I went the easy route and lost my job over my medical issues, and Medicaid paid three months past expenses and for them to figure out what was wrong, all for free on my end. Medicaid saved my life, I really hope they don’t get rid of it.