Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs (Democrat) announced be program This would erase $2 billion in medical debt for Arizonans.
“Today, I am very proud to announce that we are taking steps to eliminate medical debt for an estimated 1 million Arizonans,” Hobbs said at a press conference Monday. “This is a new start, a new chapter, and a huge weight lifted off their shoulders for each of them.”
Hobbs said Arizona will leverage up to $30 million in funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to “work with partners” at the nonprofit organization RIP Medical Debt to “develop up to approximately $2 billion worth of medical debt held by Arizonans.” He said he was trying to buy back “debts.”
“Hardworking, middle-class Arizonans should not be forced to have difficult kitchen conversations because of medical debt due to circumstances beyond their control,” Hobbs said. “And as a social worker, I can tell you that when you feel like you’re stuck in a hole with no way out, problems that go far beyond debt can snowball.”
The program provides debt forgiveness for individuals who earn less than 400 percent of the federal poverty level or whose debt represents 5 percent or more of their annual income, Jeff Smedsrud, director of RIP Medical Debt, said in a press conference. said.
Hobbs’ announcement comes after Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) announced another plan to cancel medical debt, which includes $650 in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act. This includes using $1,000,000 to cancel $1 billion in medical debt; A nonprofit organization that buys and eliminates debt.
“This isn’t something they did because they spent too much money. This is because they had a medical emergency,” Lamont said of people dealing with medical debt. “They should not suffer twice: first from illness, then from debt.”
About 250,000 Connecticut residents are expected to have their medical debt canceled, state officials said.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
