RELIEF! No Surprises Act Offers Consumers Freedom from Certain Medical Debt
Consumer Bureau Issues Bulletin to Debt Collectors
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today issued a bulletin reminding debt collectors and credit bureaus of the “No Surprises Act” and its implications for certain medical debt.
Because of the new law, consumers are not obligated to pay medical debt resulting from so-called “surprise billing.” The move is designed to encourage healthcare providers to take steps to prevent surprise out-of-network bills resulting from medical procedures.
Consumer advocates applauded the bulletin from the CFPB.
“Now that the federal No Surprises Act has taken effect, debt collectors, consumer reporting agencies, and others involved with medical debt collection and credit reporting must ensure that they do not pursue consumers for debts that fall under the Act’s protections,” said Jenifer Bosco, staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center. “The No Surprises Act provides long-awaited protections from surprise medical bills, shielding consumers from disputes between health care providers and insurance companies.”
“Medical debt is a large portion of all the accounts being collected by collection agencies,” said April Kuehnhoff, staff…
